PMD: Concealed Wounds
by Mental Scholar
Summary: A Riolu awakens in an unfamiliar world with no memory of his past. The only thing he can remember is that he was once a human being. He must work to uncover the mysteries of his own past, but in doing so may find that the Vulnus region faces a greater threat than anyone had ever anticipated.
1. Chapter 1: Awakening

He could perceive nothing but darkness. An impenetrable blackness surrounded him, waiting for an opportunity to engulf him. He attempted to move, to find an escape from the suffocating darkness, but found that his body had been rendered immobile. The darkness was holding him down lightly but firmly, preventing any movement.

Suddenly, he sensed that the darkness was approaching him from all sides, like the coils of a serpent constricting around its prey. He could make no move to resist; he could only wait, helpless, as the darkness closed in around him. It pressed down on him, its incredible weight threatening to smother him. He tried to call out for help, but found himself unable to create a sound.

Just as he was beginning to give up all hope of escaping, he heard a voice. It was very faint, as if the speaker were shouting from a great distance, and he could not make out any words, but it was unmistakably a voice. The voice called out again, louder this time, and he saw a small ray of light pierce the darkness enveloping him. This time, the voice was much clearer, making it possible for him to hear some of what it was saying.

"…ake up… Can yo… r me…"

He did not know who the speaker was, but somehow he knew that he must follow their voice to escape from the darkness. He found that he could move his body with some difficulty, so he began to slowly move toward the light. The darkness clung to him, its cold claws trying to pull him away from the light. But he struggled against the darkness, and he gradually progressed toward the light.

As he approached it, the light became brighter, until it seemed to shine with the intensity of a small sun. As the light grew stronger, he felt the darkness begin to recede, releasing him from its clutches and allowing him to sprint toward the light. Soon, the light had entirely filled his vision, leaving him completely blind. The light gradually began to fade, and the world around him slowly came into focus.

* * *

The first thing he became aware of was the fact that he was lying on his stomach. The ground was soft and covered with lush, green grass. He could see numerous trees beyond the field of grass and ferns, leading him to assume that he was in a clearing within a forest. He was surrounded by the earthy scent of nature, so powerful it was almost overwhelming.

He began to push himself up with his arms when he noticed that something seemed off about them. He paused for a moment to consider this. What was wrong with his arms? Had something changed? He looked at them closely. They were covered in short blue fur and he had a bony bump on the back of each of his paws. There did not initially seem to be anything wrong with his arms, but the more he thought about it, the more sure he was that there was something fundamentally wrong about their appearance.

His thoughts were interrupted by the voice he had heard earlier, "You're awake! Thank goodness. I was starting to think you were dead!"

He turned around to see a green, bipedal reptile with a red underbelly extending to its bottom lip. Its thick tail was a darker shade of green than the rest of its body. It had an indent in the top of its head, above its yellow eyes. It stared at him with its slit pupils and had a cheerful grin on its face.

"Hi, I'm Basil. I found you unconscious out here, so I tried to wake you up. Nothing I did was working though, so I was starting to give up and think that maybe you died. But I guess I did something right, because you're awake now!" it laughed.

He was only half listening to Basil. He was still staring at his own paws. By now, he was sure that something was wrong with his body. He began to look all over himself to see if he could determine what was wrong. He had more blue fur on his abdomen, and black fur on his chest and legs. He felt two pointy ears on the top of his head. He had two black appendages on the sides of his face. His tail was covered in blue fur.

This body part felt the most wrong. The weight of his tail felt unfamiliar and awkward, as if it were protruding much farther from his body than it should have been. In fact, he began to suspect that he should not have a tail at all. For some reason, he could not shake the feeling that the very existence of his tail was completely incorrect, as though it were a third arm that had spontaneously grown on his body.

Although he was becoming increasingly convinced that something was very wrong with his body, he could not remember being any different. In fact, he could not remember anything. He realized that his memory was completely blank. He failed to remember anything about who or what he was.

He began to feel panic when he discovered his amnesia. _'Who am I? What am I? What's going on?'_ he thought, alarmed by his own inability to remember anything about himself or his current situation.

"Um… Are you okay? Can you hear me?" Basil asked.

He stared at the creature. "Wh-what are you?" he asked.

Basil stared back at him for a moment before replying, "Come on! You can't expect me to believe that you're in Amaros and you don't even know what a Treecko is!"

"Amaros, what is that?" he asked cautiously.

Basil appeared stunned that he had never heard of Amaros. "You're in Amaros right now. You know, one of the Four Kingdoms? Honestly, have you been living under a rock your whole life?" Basil said.

"I don't know," he replied, hanging his head in embarrassment. "I can't remember anything."

"What?!" Basil exclaimed. "You can't remember anything? Your name? Where you're from? Nothing?"

"No," he said. "I can't remember any of that stuff. But I feel like something is wrong with my body. Like I'm not the way I'm supposed to be."

Basil stared at him, confused. "You look like a perfectly normal Riolu to me," he said.

' _Riolu,'_ he thought, _'is that what I am?'_ But something still felt wrong about his body. He felt short, and his weight felt uneven. It felt like someone had haphazardly attached weights to his body. He was sure by this point that he was not supposed to be a Riolu.

' _But if I wasn't a Riolu, then what was I?'_ he wondered. He felt as though there was a word hiding in the crevices of his subconscious, a word that would give him the answer he sought if he could coax it out. Desperate for any information he could find about his past, he dug deep into his mind, searching for the word. It felt as though there was something actively resisting his efforts, withholding the desired knowledge from him. Finally, he managed to overcome the mental obstacle and find the word he was looking for, although it raised more questions than it answered: _Human_.

He still did not understand. He could not even remember what a human was, but he had become convinced that he was supposed to be one. _'But what happened?'_ he wondered, _'How did I become a Riolu? Why am I here?'_ Unfortunately, his severely lacking memory was incapable of providing any answers to these questions.

"Hello?" Basil said. "Are you just going to keep zoning out whenever I try to talk to you? What is a Riolu like you doing in Amaros?"

"I'm not a Riolu!" he blurted out. "I'm a human!"

For several moments, Basil blankly stared at him. Then, the Treecko began to chuckle. "Yeah, right. Everyone knows humans are just a myth. Honestly, you're really weird," Basil grinned. "I think I like you."

"I'm serious!" the human-turned-Riolu shouted. "I really am a human! That's the only thing I can remember." He slumped over, ears drooping. "I can't even remember my own name," he said.

Basil was silent for a few seconds before responding, "Well, human or not, it sounds like you could use some help. You can come with me if you'd like to. If you've forgotten your name, I guess I'll just call you Riolu. At least until you remember what your real name is. Riolu are really rare in Amaros, so we probably won't have to worry about getting you mixed up with others. Are you okay with that?"

Riolu nodded, "That'll be fine. But I still don't understand any of this. What is Amaros? From what you've said, it's obviously a place, but I don't recognize that name at all. What is a Treecko? Or a Riolu? Why am I here? And why can't I remember anything?!" His voice rose to a hysterical yell.

"Calm down!" Basil said. "Getting into a panic isn't going to make things any better. I can't help you with those last two things, but I can tell you all about Amaros and Pokémon on the way back to Verdura. Before you ask," he added, anticipating Riolu's next question, "Verdura is the capital of Amaros."

Riolu and Basil began to walk, leaving the clearing behind and following a dirt path among the trees. Riolu looked around, trying to absorb as much of his surroundings as possible. The trees bordering the path were dispersed widely enough to allow him to see into the forest around him for a short distance. The forest became denser farther from the path, making it difficult to see much further.

The forest was full of life. Smaller plants flourished among the tall trees. Several bushes held blossoming flowers, adding many beautiful colors to the brown and green of the forest. Their pleasant scents drifted through the air. The lush vegetation filled the area, giving life to the forest.

Riolu saw various creatures wandering the woods. Some of them walked or crawled along the ground, while others climbed the trunks of trees or flew from branch to branch. There was incredible variation in the creatures' appearances and behaviors. Most had fur or feathers of some sort with widely ranging colors. Riolu saw a small blue creature running along the ground with what seemed to be leaves sprouting from the top of its head. Many traveled in pairs or small groups with others of similar appearances, while others were solitary. None of them acknowledged Riolu or Basil as they passed.

As they walked, Riolu questioned Basil about the world that he had apparently wound up in. If he was going to be here, in this body, for a long time, he might as well try to learn all that he could about it.

"So what is a Pokémon?" he asked.

Basil thought for a moment, then said, "I'm not really sure how to describe Pokémon. It just isn't something that you need to explain very often, you know? Every creature I can think of is a Pokémon.

"Well," he added, "I guess humans wouldn't be Pokémon, assuming they actually exist like you say. Anyways, there are hundreds of different species of Pokémon. We come in all different shapes, sizes, and colors. And each Pokémon has one or two types. I'm a Treecko, so I'm a grass type. Riolu like you are fighting types."

Riolu was surprised that Basil knew his type. ' _Didn't he just say that Riolu are uncommon around here?'_ he thought.

"Wait a minute," he said. "How do you know my type? In fact, how do you even know what a Riolu looks like if there aren't any around here?"

"Well," Basil replied, "I've been studying as many different kinds of Pokémon as I can lately, including Riolu."

"Studying? What for?" Riolu asked.

"Ever since I was a little kid, I've always wanted to be part of a Royal Squad. That's my dream: to join a Royal Squad and go on all sorts of adventures," said Basil. He remained silent for several seconds, apparently lost in thought.

It was clear that Basil was not going to keep talking of his own accord, so Riolu prompted him, "What's a Royal Squad?"

Basil was so lost in thought that he jumped slightly at the sound of Riolu's voice. After a few more moments of silence, he replied, "Royal Squads are teams that work for the Queen of Amaros. They do all sorts of missions: rescuing people, exploring unknown areas, retrieving items, even defending the queen herself!" He grinned excitedly, "They're so cool! I would give anything to join them!"

"So what does studying Pokémon have to do with being a Royal Squad member?" Riolu asked.

"To become a Royal Squad member, you have to be able to fight," Basil said. "So I figured that it would help my chances if I know about the sorts of Pokémon I might have to fight if I get in. I know about Riolu and Lucario—" He saw Riolu's look of confusion at this new name, then clarified, "Lucario is the evolved form of Riolu. Evolution is another big part of being a Pokémon. When a Pokémon evolves, they take on a new, stronger form. Anyways, I spent time studying Riolu and Lucario because they're supposed to be really strong. But most of them live in Colos because all of the mountains make it a better place for them to train."

"So you're studying all the species of Pokémon to become a member of a Royal Squad?" Riolu asked.

"All the species?" Basil responded. "Of course not! There's no way I'd ever be able to memorize every single kind of Pokémon. There are just way too many."

"How many kinds are there?" Riolu asked.

"There are hundreds and hundreds!" Basil said. "I couldn't even begin to guess how many there are in the world. Just when you think that you must know them all, a few dozen new species show up out of nowhere!"

The two walked in silence for a few seconds before Basil turned back to Riolu. "So, is there anything else you want to ask me right now?"

Riolu thought for a moment, then said, "There is one more thing I'd like to know about. What are the Four Kingdoms? You mentioned them before, but you never told me much about them."

"Well," Basil replied, "the Four Kingdoms are the four nations in the Vulnus region. The kingdoms are Amaros, Colos, Valoden, and Latus. Colos and Valoden are pretty war-like countries. They constantly get into fights with one another, but there hasn't been a full-scale war in this region in a while. Amaros shares a border with both Valoden and Colos, so we wind up having to cool them both down a lot of the time. Latus is a kingdom on an island off the coast of Colos. They don't usually get involved in wars and other things going on between the three other Great Kingdoms. A lot of people say that Latus is full of cowards who are too weak to win in a fight."

Basil looked up at the trees above them. "We should be getting close to Verdura right about now," he said. "There will be plenty of time for you to find out more about this sort of stuff after we get there."

The pair travelled in silence after this. Riolu watched Basil as they walked. He was not entirely convinced that Basil really believed that he was a human. He couldn't tell if Basil thought he was lying or insane, but he thought that Basil probably believed one or the other.

' _What if he doesn't trust me at all?'_ he thought, _'And how could I blame him? I told him that I'm human, but according to him there's no such thing as humans. How could I expect him to believe me when I'm telling him something that he thinks is impossible?'_

Riolu found himself feeling wary of his companion. _'If he doesn't trust me, how can I trust him?'_ he thought.

Riolu wasn't sure what Basil was thinking, or if Basil trusted him. Despite his doubts, Riolu decided that he had no one else to turn to, so he would go along with Basil for now. If it turns out that going with Basil is not his best option, he will find his own way in this strange and new world.

Riolu and Basil continued to walk along the forest path until Basil began to slow down. "We're almost there," he said.

To Riolu's surprise, the trees did not seem to thin out as they approached the capital. In fact, the foliage above thickened as the trees grew larger. The trees soon towered over them, colossal guardians of the capital. The leaves on their interlocking branches blended together, becoming a sea of green overhead. Despite the thick canopy high above, sunlight found its way to the ground largely uninhibited by the leafy layer.

Riolu and Basil crested one final hill and Riolu saw an incredible city sprawling below him. He was surprised to discover that the capital of Amaros was not just a city hidden within the forest, but a city that was a part of the forest itself. All of the buildings were constructed using either wood or stone. Many of them seemed to be at least partially merged with the trunks of the massive trees whose growth seemed to have been undisturbed by the bustling city that had developed at their bases. In the distance, Riolu could see parts of what seemed to be an enormous white castle, although trees obscured much of it.

Riolu stopped in his tracks and stared at the city before him, overwhelmed with awe at the sight of a city merged with the trees of the forest. Below him, he saw Pokémon of every shape and size wandering the streets and paths that meandered among the city's buildings and trees.

Basil turned to Riolu and grinned. "Well, here we are," he said. "Welcome to Verdura."


	2. Chapter 2: Verdura

Basil led Riolu down the final hill and into the outskirts of Verdura. "First thing's first," he said. "We'll go to my house so you can take a look at it and see what you think. You're welcome to stay there with me, or you can try to find somewhere else if you'd prefer. It's entirely up to you."

Riolu felt grateful for Basil's generosity. After all, the Treecko could have just left him in the clearing, rather than bring him to this city and offer him a place to stay. "Thank you, Basil," he said. "I really appreciate all of this."

"No problem," Basil replied good-naturedly.

The pair walked through a narrow alleyway between two stone buildings and came out on a wide cobblestone street filled with enormous crowds of Pokémon moving in both directions. "This street cuts through this part of the city," Basil said. "That's why it's the quickest way to get from here to my house; this street will take us right through Emerald Square to the part of the city where I live."

Basil and Riolu exited the alleyway and walked onto the street, turning to their right and following the crowd moving in that direction. Fortunately, the street was wide enough to prevent the crowds from becoming too dense for the pair to move freely, but Riolu still found himself being jostled a few times by impatient pedestrians in a hurry to reach their destinations.

"It's a good thing we got here when we did," Basil said to Riolu. "When it starts to get close to sunset, everyone will be rushing to get home, and this entire street will be completely packed. The crowds get so dense then that it takes forever for anybody to get anywhere."

Riolu shuddered at the thought of being stuck in a crowd so dense that it could hardly move, even though everyone in it was in a hurry to get somewhere. "How many people live in Verdura?" he asked.

"I don't know for sure," Basil said. "If I had to guess, I'd say at least tens of thousands of Pokémon. But like I said, I'm not really sure. I bet there's a record of how many people there are living in the city somewhere, but I don't know where it would be, or even if I would be allowed to look at it."

As they continued to walk toward Basil's home, Riolu looked at all of the buildings they passed, trying to take in as much of his surroundings as he possibly could. None of the buildings seemed to be houses. Riolu guessed that the city's residential areas were placed elsewhere so that its citizens would not have to put up with the din produced by the bustling crowds on this street. Riolu also noted that most of the buildings along the sides of the road were made of stone rather than wood.

Most of the buildings along the road seemed to house businesses, offering a wide variety of goods and services. There were stores of all kinds lining the cobblestone street, especially stores that sold food. Riolu felt the aromas of the various foods being sold at these stores and stands washing over him, and realized that he had not eaten since waking up. He decided to wait until reaching Basil's house to mention this, although the myriad of tantalizing scents continued to bombard his nose, causing his mouth to water.

Suddenly, the space in front of him widened immensely, and Riolu found himself standing next to Basil at the edge of a large plaza. Like the street they had just been walking on, the ground in the plaza was cobblestone. A tall fountain occupied the center of the space. It was made of bright white stone, which had been sculpted into the shapes of several Pokémon that Riolu was unable to identify.

The one that stood out the most was a small Pokémon at the top of the fountain. It had a small, round body with a larger head that was roughly the shape of a raindrop. It had two thin antennae sprouting from its forehead. It had small, round feet and long arms ending in hands with three fingers each. It had small, fairy-like wings on its back. A green stone, perhaps an emerald, was placed between its antennae, and the light from the sun made it seem to glow from within.

Water poured out from the mouths of each of the Pokémon on the fountain, except for the one at the top. Instead, water was being shot straight up from behind where the stone Pokémon sat. The stream of water curved away from the Pokémon, dropping behind it to the pool at the fountain's base.

The plaza was very beautiful and serene, despite the large number of Pokémon traveling through it. Riolu was unable to determine what gave the area this quality. The crowds of Pokémon all going in different directions should have made the plaza feel loud and hectic, and yet Riolu found himself reveling in the peace that being in the plaza seemed to bring him. The soft glow of the gem on the fountain seemed to fill the plaza, casting its soothing light on the Pokémon wandering through it

"This is Emerald Square," said Basil. "It's probably the greatest landmark in Verdura. Except for Ivory Palace, of course. There's nowhere as cool as that. But not very many people are allowed in there unless they have an important reason for being there. Or if they're part of a Royal Squad."

Riolu, seeing that his companion was about to distract himself, asked, "So is Emerald Square a marketplace or something? There are some stands over there." He pointed to a small cluster of stalls nearby, where merchants were shouting to get the attention of passerby in order to sell their wares.

"Some merchants like to try to take advantage of the popularity of Emerald Square to try to get people to buy their stuff," Basil replied. "But it isn't the main marketplace in Verdura. You'll see that soon enough. I don't think it's possible to live in Verdura and not go to the marketplace at some point. There are stores all over the place in areas that a lot of people go to, like Emerald Square and the main road through Verdura, but they're nothing compared to the market."

Basil led Riolu around the fountain to the other end of Emerald Square. Although they maintained a safe distance from the plaza's merchants to indicate that they were not interested in shopping, several of the more aggressive merchants shouted to the two of them to try to persuade them to purchase their goods.

"Hey! You two! You look like you could use some seeds! Or perhaps you would be interested in buying berries! I have the finest produce you've ever seen!" one merchant shouted.

"Why don't you come over here and take a look at my orbs?" another hollered. "I offer the best bargains in all of Verdura. I guarantee it!"

Basil and Riolu ignored them and reached the opposite end of Emerald Square, where the wide street continued to cut through the city. They continued their commute to Basil's home along the road, leaving Emerald Square and its mysterious beauty behind.

Riolu was curious about the fountain in the center of Emerald Square. He couldn't shake the feeling that there was something off about it, as though it possessed some strange quality that he could not identify. "Basil," he asked, "what was that Pokémon at the top of the fountain?"

Basil looked at him and replied, "That was Celebi. Celebi is a legendary Pokémon and the guardian of the forest. I guess you could say that Celebi's almost like the patron god of Amaros, even though we don't worship him or anything. According to legend, Celebi has the power to travel through time, but he's only supposed to show up in times of peace."

"What was that gem on his forehead?" Riolu asked.

"I don't know," Basil answered. "It's just something that the sculptor added when the fountain was built. I don't think it really means anything; it's probably just to make the fountain look prettier. That gem is the reason it's called Emerald Square."

Riolu thought that he had somehow sensed something unusual about the fountain in Emerald Square, but he became less certain. Basil's explanation made it seem that the fountain and its gem were purely cosmetic. Riolu saw no reason to doubt Basil's knowledge about Emerald Square.

' _How would I be able to tell if something is off about it?'_ Riolu thought. _'Surely somebody would have figured it out if there really were something weird about the fountain. It must have just been my imagination.'_

The two of them walked in silence for a few minutes, neither able to think of anything worthwhile to say. All of a sudden, Basil turned left and began to walk down a side street. "Follow me, Riolu," he said. "We're getting close to my house."

Basil led Riolu through a series of twists and turns in the side streets of Verdura. The buildings here were more spread out than in the areas of the city that Riolu had seen so far, allowing each to have its own yard. Gardens populated many of the yards, filled with plants heavy with berries and flowers, whose bright colors and pleasant aromas gave the area a refreshing light-heartedness. It was obvious to Riolu that this area of Verdura was primarily residential. The streets here were small and windy, and it did not take long for the former human to lose all sense of direction.

After a short while, Basil slowed down and then came to a complete stop. Gesturing toward the house on their right, the Treecko said, "Well, here we are. This is my home."

Riolu looked at the house. It was a cylindrical, two-story building made of rough stone. Its exterior was painted green. A small stone path led from the street to the house's front door. A short blue mailbox stood next to the path where it connected to the street. It was a small home, but Riolu thought that it looked relatively comfortable.

"I know it doesn't really look like much," Basil said, apparently embarrassed by his modest living conditions. "But it's a good enough home."

"I think it looks great," Riolu replied amiably.

Basil smiled, "That's probably just because you can't remember what a good-looking house looks like. Anyways, let's go inside. I'll set up a place for you to sleep, and then we can get something to eat," he said. Basil paused for a moment, then quickly added, "If you want to stay with me, of course."

"Of course I would like to stay with you," Riolu replied. "After all, it's not like I really have anywhere else to go."

Basil and Riolu crossed Basil's yard and approached the front door. Just before reaching the door, Basil stopped and kneeled to the ground. He picked up a small stone in the path to reveal a shallow hole in the ground. From the hole, Basil produced a small bronze key. After putting the stone back in its place in the path to conceal the hole, Basil inserted the key into the door's lock and twisted it. There was a soft click, and he swung the door open.

Riolu entered the house and found that the first floor was all one large room. A ladder on the opposite side of the room led up to the second floor through a hole in the ceiling. The room was bare except for a small table surrounded by four pillows and various household items littering the floor.

"Like I said, it isn't much, but it's enough," said Basil. "There's more on the second floor. That's where I sleep and study."

Basil and Riolu climbed the ladder to reach the second floor of the house. There was a large green cushion in the middle of the room with a white blanket folded neatly next to it. There was also a large wooden cabinet, a half-filled bookcase, and a desk with various papers scattered on its surface.

Basil turned to Riolu and said, "This is my bedroom. I'll go ahead and set up a bed for you. After I do that, we'll go to the market and get something to eat." Riolu remembered how hungry he was and nodded in agreement.

Basil walked over to the cabinet and pulled its doors open. From within, he pulled out a large red cushion and a blanket identical to the one in the center of the floor. He laid the red cushion on the floor beside the green one and folded the blanket next to it.

"I always keep a spare bed in the cabinet in case I have a guest," he explained. "Now that your bed's set up, let's go to the market. We'll be able to get something to eat, and it'll be good for you to learn where it is and who you can buy certain things from."

Basil retrieved a small pouch from a drawer in his desk. Riolu could hear something clinking inside the bag and guessed that it contained coins. Basil dropped the pouch into a larger brown bag, which he put on, his head and one arm going through its loop so that the bag's strap crossed his chest from his left shoulder to his right hip.

Basil and Riolu then climbed down the ladder and walked out the front door. Riolu allowed himself to be led along a different route, this time leading to the marketplace.

* * *

"Here we are," Basil said. "This is the marketplace."

Riolu looked around, trying to take in everything that was going on around him. The most immediately noticeable aspect of the marketplace was the noise. Because of all of the Pokémon conversing, advertising, and haggling, there was a constant dull roar in the market. There were dozens of stalls taking up the space, as well as several larger shops surrounding the area, making the market very colorful. At the same time, Riolu found himself being set upon by countless scents, so many that he could not discern one from another.

Basil, seemingly oblivious to the storm of stimuli besieging his companion, grabbed Riolu's arm and pulled him into the throng of shoppers seeking the best bargains offered by the merchants of Verdura.

"Alright," he said, "time for the grand tour of the marketplace. I'll show you the places with all the best items for sale." He led Riolu around the market, weaving through the crowds and stalls and telling him about certain stalls and shops.

"That," Basil said, gesturing to a small wooden building that was built into the root of one of Verdura's enormous trees, "is the Meowth Bank. Meowth stores your money for you when you don't need it. His bank is right on the edge of the market so that people can withdraw money to buy things."

"This," he said as they passed a wide stall owned by a Pokémon with long yellow hair and a bright red dress, "is the Aurum Cloth Shop. Jynx is the owner. She sells all sorts of accessories like scarves and bows."

Basil continued to show Riolu different buildings and stalls at which a wide variety of goods and services could be purchased. Among these was a large stone building that Basil identified as Machoke's Dojo, a place where Pokémon could train to become better fighters. Riolu made sure to remember the dojo's location because, as an amnesiac human-turned-Pokémon, he seriously doubted that he possessed many fighting skills.

Finally, Basil took Riolu to the last store they would be visiting. It was a medium-sized, wooden building with a large window on each side of its door. Behind the windows, a variety of merchandise was on display, ranging from food to orbs. "This is the Kecleon Shop," he said. "The Kecleon brothers sell just about everything. They don't really specialize in a particular type of merchandise like most of the other shops here. We'll get some food here."

Basil and Riolu walked into the store. There was a long counter in front of the back wall. Behind the counter were two reptilian Pokémon. They were bipedal chameleons, each with a jagged red line crossing their abdomens and a curled up tail. However, one was primarily green and yellow, while the majority of the other's body was purple and green. Riolu assumed that these two were the Kecleon brothers that Basil had mentioned. At the moment, there were no other Pokémon in the shop.

The two Kecleon instantly straightened up when Basil and Riolu entered the store. "Basil!" the green one said excitedly. "It's so good to see our favorite customer again! What are you looking for on this fine day?"

"Just food," Riolu replied. "I was showing my friend around the marketplace. He's never been around here before, so I gave him a tour and now we're looking for something to eat."

At that moment, both the Kecleon brothers looked at Riolu and gasped. "A Riolu in Amaros?" the purple brother exclaimed. "How very unusual." The brothers quickly worked to conceal their initial shock at Riolu's species and adopted a more welcoming composure.

"Please pardon our rudeness," the purple Kecleon said. "We don't see very many Riolu in Verdura."

"No matter," the green Kecleon added with a friendly smile. "Any friend of Basil's is a friend of ours."

"Well, he sure isn't a friend of ours," a loud, gruff voice responded from behind Riolu. The former human quickly turned around to see who had spoken and found himself face-to-face with a group of three Pokémon.

Standing in the middle of the group was a large purple Pokémon that seemed to be covered with thick armor and spikes. He had a white underbelly and a thick tail. He had two arms, each ending in three sharp claws. He was much taller than Riolu, roughly doubling the former human's height. There was a lengthy blue scarf tied around his neck with a silver pin attached to it. Riolu noticed a symbol inscribed into the pin. It consisted of two intertwining vines, one dark and one light, coiling around a jewel. A large bag was strapped to his back.

On the purple titan's left was a blue quadruped with a lighter blue underside. It had two large fins on its long neck and head, and there were diamond-shaped crystals along the sides of its body. It seemed to be almost double the height of the purple Pokémon in the middle. Its head came close to brushing against the ceiling of the store. The Pokémon seemed aloof, as though it considered itself above those surrounding it. It had a golden ribbon tied around its tail. A leather satchel hung from its side, the bag's strap crossing the blue Pokémon's chest and looping around the base of its neck. There was a silver pin attached to the strap, just like the pin on the scarf of the purple Pokémon.

The third Pokémon was by far the least intimidating. It was much closer to Riolu's size. It seemed to be a fox, but it had multiple leaves sprouting from its yellow body. It had amber eyes, which stared at Riolu with surprise, contrasting with the rage and coldness of its two companions. There was a short green scarf around the Pokémon's neck, with its own silver pin.

The purple Pokémon glared down at Riolu and spoke in the gruff voice Riolu had heard a moment ago, "Are you lost, little Riolu? Because your kind doesn't belong in Amaros. Run on home to Colos, runt!"

Riolu was shocked by his hostility. As far as he was aware, he had not done anything to warrant such treatment from these strangers.

"What are you doing in Amaros, Riolu?" the purple Pokémon said angrily. "Are you a spy sneaking into the country to bring information back to Colos?"

"No!" Basil shouted, standing between Riolu and his aggressor. "He's my friend. So leave him alone! I'm not going to let you bully him when he hasn't done anything wrong."

The purple Pokémon chuckled, "And what do you plan on doing to stop me?"

"Choose your battles more wisely, young one," the tall blue Pokémon said, its voice revealing it to be female. "We are a Royal Squad. A Silver Rank one, in fact. You would not stand a chance." Her tone was cold and uncaring, as though it made no difference to her whether Basil heeded her words or not.

Basil seemed to deflate slightly at this revelation, but he did not step aside. "Leave Riolu alone!" he repeated. "He's done nothing wrong!"

The purple Pokémon merely grinned menacingly at Basil's words. "If you don't step aside," he said, "I'll beat you to a bloody pulp and then I'll arrest your friend as a Colos spy. Unless of course either of you can tell me why he's in Amaros."

"Riolu is not a spy from Colos!" Basil insisted. "Not even he knows why he's here. He lost his memory."

The room went silent. For several seconds, no one said anything. Then a low sound broke the silence. The purple Pokémon was chuckling again.

"Amnesia! What a great cover!" he said, making no attempt to conceal the contempt in his voice. "Clever, little Riolu. That way you don't have to think of a convincing story to explain your presence. You're just a poor, lost Pokémon who doesn't know what's going on, right? And that way, everyone will try to help you by telling you all about Amaros. Very clever."

Riolu was on the verge of tears. Finding his voice, he shouted back, "It's true! I woke up in the forest with no memory! I don't know why I'm here, or even who I am! It's the truth, I swear!"

The purple Pokémon simply grinned incredulously. "Come with me, runt," he said. "We can either do this the easy way, or the hard way. Either way, I'm taking you to Ivory Palace."

"You will do no such thing, Nidoking!" one of the Kecleon brothers suddenly shouted. Everyone's gazes shifted to the two Kecleon behind the shop's counter. They had both turned bright red, making it impossible to tell the two apart.

"You have heard why the Riolu is here, so leave him be," the Kecleon on the left said, fury pervading his voice.

"Unless, of course, you want to make us your enemies as well," the other Kecleon added, equally filled with rage.

Nidoking was visibly shaken by the shopkeepers' response to his threats. Evidently, he had not been expecting them to side against him. Averting his gaze, he said, "Very well. If you plan to defend these two, there is nothing I can do to make you see reason. Let's go." He turned around and strode out of the shop, flanked by his teammates.

The Kecleon brothers quickly reverted back to their original colors. "We're terribly sorry about all of that," the green Kecleon said. "To make up for that unpleasantness, we'll give you each two free apples."

Their generosity immediately cheered Basil up. "Thank you so much!" he said. "You're the best!"

The brothers' kindness did little to improve Riolu's mood, however. His fear and worry lingered in his mind. Only time would have any hope of alleviating the negative emotions swirling through his mind like a tempest.

"It's the least we can do after what just happened," the green Kecleon said, putting four bright red apples in a bag and giving it to Basil.

Basil and Riolu left the Kecleon Shop with the free apples. The pair of Pokémon began the trip back to Basil's house.

Once they had left, the purple Kecleon turned to his brother and said, "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"That what they said about amnesia seems to ring a bell? Yes, that's exactly what I was thinking," the green Kecleon replied. "But why would it sound familiar?"

"Maybe it was something from one of those stories that Dad used to tell us when we were kids," the purple Kecleon suggested.

"Maybe," the green brother said, pondering the familiarity of Riolu's plight. "But that doesn't matter right now, we have a shop to run."

* * *

After returning to Basil's house, Basil and Riolu quickly devoured the apples they had received from the Kecleon brothers. By the time they finished their meal, the sun had set and night had fallen upon Verdura. The two Pokémon climbed the ladder and laid down on their beds.

Riolu's emotions had not fully recovered from the accusations and threats made by Nidoking. He was feeling terrified that Nidoking might carry out his threats, and worried that others might treat him with the same suspicion and hatred. _'I wonder if they would treat me differently if they knew that I'm human,'_ he thought. _'Or maybe they'd just think that I'm a spy from Colos who also happens to be completely insane.'_

"Don't let the things that Nidoking said get to you," said Basil, as if he had been silently reading Riolu's mind. "He doesn't know what he's talking about, and I know that most people in Verdura aren't like him. And please don't let him shape your impression of Royal Squads. Most of them are really honorable, not bullies like him."

Riolu rolled over on his bed so that he was facing Basil. "Why does my impression of Royal Squads matter?" he asked, unsure why what he thought about Royal Squads would be a concern at the moment.

As Riolu watched, Basil's facial expression changed to one of nervousness. "Well," he said hesitantly, "I forgot to tell you something earlier. You know how I told you that I've always wanted to be a member of a Royal Squad? The thing is, unless I join an already existing team, which would be really difficult, I have to start a new team with at least one other Pokémon. But I've never really had many friends. So I was hoping that you'd be willing to form a Royal Squad with me."

Riolu was surprised by Basil's request. _'Is that why he brought me back to Verdura and let me stay with him?'_ he wondered. _'Am I just a way for him to be a Royal Squad member?'_

Basil seemed to know what Riolu was thinking and was quick to assure him, "Don't worry. You don't have to do it if you don't want to. I'm not going to try to force you to form a squad with me. And you're welcome to stay with me for as long as you want, even if you say no. But if you think it's something you would want to do, I think we'd be a great Royal Squad."

Riolu rolled onto his back and pondered Basil's request. _'Should I say yes? I don't know if forming a Royal Squad with Basil is the best thing for me to do right now. But what else would I do? I don't even know who I am. How am I supposed to know what to do?'_

Basil spoke again, "If it helps you decide, Royal Squads often have to investigate all kinds of mysteries. We might find something out about your amnesia, or how you became a Pokémon." He then fell silent, presumably drifting off to sleep.

Basil's words were all it took to tip the scale. Riolu knew that one of the paths before him was more likely to lead him to the answers he was seeking about himself, and so he decided to follow it. _'Okay,'_ he thought as sleep took him. _'I'll become a Royal Squad member with Basil.'_


	3. Chapter 3: Preparation

Riolu found himself alone in an endless, blank expanse. There was nothing around him. He could not even see the ground he was standing on. All around, there was nothing but the empty landscape.

"Hello?" Riolu shouted. "Is anyone here?" He received no response from the emptiness surrounding him.

' _Where am I? How did I get here?'_ he wondered. He could find no clues in the blank world around him to help him discern his location.

He began to wander around, trying to find something in the blankness that could act as a landmark. Unfortunately, his efforts were fruitless. The landscape showed no change whatsoever. Riolu began to question whether he was actually moving at all, as he did not seem to be going anywhere.

He started to sprint, hoping that doing so would bring him more luck. He still could not find anything. Riolu did not know how long he had been running before he gave up, slowing his pace to a sluggish crawl. Seconds, minutes, and hours seemed to become indistinguishable from one another in this empty world.

Riolu kept looking around, quickly losing hope of finding anything substantial in this endless nothingness. Just as he was about to give in to the futility of his search, he thought he heard something: a very faint noise. He quickly turned around to identify the source of the mysterious sound.

At first, he could see nothing but the empty whiteness he had become much too familiar with. Suddenly, something seemed to materialize in the distance. It was a very faint, vague shape. Riolu found himself unable to identify it. He began to move toward the mysterious figure.

As he slowly approached the faint shape, the landscape began to change. Riolu could see slight shading developing around him, giving some definition to the blank world. He was still unable to determine anything specific about his surroundings, but he could make out a few shapes protruding from the ground. Riolu could not tell what they were, so he returned his attention to the first shape he had seen.

Black tendrils began to sprout from the mysterious figure, infecting the blank world and converting it into a pitch-black prison. The tendrils grabbed at his body, constricting around his limbs and immobilizing him. They began to suffocate him, engulfing him in their chilling embrace.

Riolu struggled against the tendrils, pulling away from them with all of his strength. He could not imagine what their motives might be, but he knew that he had to do everything in his power to avoid being overwhelmed by the amorphous coils clinging to his body. Despite Riolu's best efforts, he could not escape their icy grasp.

The black tendrils pulled on Riolu's body with greater strength, trying to force him to the ground. Riolu resisted them, but he could feel his strength fading. It felt like his energy was being drained by the tentacles as they tried to overpower him. They dragged Riolu to the ground, bringing him to his knees. Riolu finally gave in, providing the darkness an opportunity to engulf him.

The tendrils quickly covered the majority of Riolu's body, stifling him. He could feel his consciousness beginning to waver. As he faded away, the last thing he saw was the faint silhouette in the distance being consumed by the darkness.

* * *

Riolu woke with a start. Several moments passed before he realized that he had been dreaming. It took more time for the remnants of his panic to fade. He thought he could still feel the cold tendrils clinging to his body, stifling him with pure darkness. Riolu sat up on his bed, gradually calming down.

' _What was that dream?'_ Riolu wondered. _'What does it mean? Does it have something to do with my past?'_

Sunlight shone through the windows of Basil's house. Riolu realized that Basil was not in the room.

' _Maybe Basil is downstairs,'_ Riolu thought, although he did not hear any movement in the house.

Riolu stood up. He crossed the room to the ladder leading to the bottom floor of the house. He descended the ladder to discover that Basil was nowhere to be found.

Looking around the room, he saw a large red apple resting on the table. A small piece of paper had been placed next to it. Walking over to the table, Riolu found that the paper was covered in illegible markings. They seemed to resemble footprints of various shapes. Unable to ascertain its meaning, Riolu chose to disregard the note and quickly ate the apple.

As Riolu finished eating the apple, he heard the door open. He turned around to see Basil crossing the threshold. Riolu had a brief moment of panic when he realized that he did not know whether the apple on the table had actually been intended for him. He could have just committed some sort of _faux pas_ by eating the apple without permission. However, his worry quickly dissipated when he saw Basil's cheerful grin.

"Oh! You're awake," Basil said. "Good morning! How are you feeling?"

Riolu smiled. "I'm fine," he said. "I just got up." He picked up the note on the table. "Basil," he asked, "what sort of writing is this? I can't read it."

"Oh, you can't read?" Basil replied. "Well, I guess it makes sense. After all, you wouldn't be able to remember how to, would you? Well, those are called footprint runes. Pokémon use them for reading and writing. I left that note to tell you to help yourself to the apple on the table while I went out. I'll see if I can teach you how to read footprint runes some time."

An uncomfortable silence descended upon the two of them. Riolu searched frantically for something he could say to Basil to fill the gap in the conversation. After several moments, he realized that he had yet to inform Basil of his decision to be in a Royal Squad with him.

"Basil," he said, "do you remember what you asked me last night? About forming a Royal Squad?"

This clearly piqued Basil's interest. His eyes widened and he leaned forward slightly, failing to conceal his excitement and nervous anticipation. "Are you saying that you've decided?" he asked. "Well? Will you form a Royal Squad with me?"

Riolu felt his conviction waver for a moment. All of his doubts and concerns about his decision came racing back to him within a single second. _'How could I ever be a member of a Royal Squad? I'm not even a real Riolu. I don't even know who I am or why I'm here,'_ he thought darkly. However, he remembered Basil's request the night before and his determination was renewed. _'No! I'm not going to give up without even trying,'_ he thought. _'I can't let Basil down!'_

Pushing his concerns aside, Riolu steeled his resolve and said, "Yes, Basil. I'll be in a Royal Squad with you."

Basil's face lit up with elation at Riolu's words. "Really?" he replied, jubilation pervading his voice. "You'll do it? Thank you! Thank you so much!"

Riolu found himself infected by Basil's enthusiasm. He felt his doubts about forming a Royal Squad with Basil begin to fade away and be replaced with optimistic confidence. _'This is the right choice,'_ he told himself. _'I'm sure of it.'_

Basil quickly regained his composure. "Okay. If we're going to try to start a Royal Squad, we're going to need to start training as soon as possible," he said, adopting an almost business-like manner. "To be in a Royal Squad, you're supposed to be a good fighter. While we're at it, you should probably learn about Pokémon and footprint runes too."

Riolu was dismayed by the list of his shortcomings, but assured himself that he would be able to overcome them and help Basil fulfill his dream. With any luck, being a Royal Squad member would provide opportunities to investigate his forgotten past as well.

"Okay," Riolu said. "When do we get started?"

* * *

It had been several days since Riolu agreed to be in a Royal Squad with Basil. Since then, Basil had acted as Riolu's tutor, teaching him to read and helping him learn about the world of Pokémon. Riolu found himself being forced to learn the intricacies of types, attacks, and abilities in as little time as possible. Basil also regularly drilled Riolu on his memorization of the various species of Pokémon. Although progress was slow, Riolu felt that he was gradually developing an understanding of this world.

Riolu was sitting at Basil's desk. He had just finished practicing writing in footprint runes. He looked over his messily scribbled message, hoping that his attempt was relatively successful. He heard the door open, then slam shut downstairs.

"Riolu!" Basil called. "Are you still here?"

"Yeah!" Riolu responded. "I'm upstairs! I just finished practicing writing."

Basil climbed the ladder and approached Riolu. "Good," he said, "because we're going out for the rest of the day."

This announcement surprised Riolu. Basil had not told him that they were going somewhere today. "Why?" he asked.

"You've been spending the last few days studying and learning to write," Basil said. "That's great and all, but I think you need to start training to fight. To start a Royal Squad, we're going to have to be able to prove that we're good enough fighters. I heard that we have to pass a bunch of tests just to be considered. If we don't start training soon, I don't think we'll ever have a chance."

Riolu found his nervousness resurfacing. He had spent the previous few days learning about many of the important aspects of fighting as a Pokémon, but the thought of attempting to put the principles he had learned into practice terrified him. He was afraid that his lack of experience would cause him to fail and disappoint Basil. However, he also saw the sense in Basil's words. He knew that learning to fight, although intimidating, ultimately would be necessary if he and Basil were to have any hope of forming a Royal Squad.

"Okay," Riolu said. "I guess you're right. When do we start?"

"As soon as we can," Basil replied. "How about now? Let's get going!"

Without waiting for a response, Basil grabbed Riolu by the arm and began pulling him out the door. Riolu did not resist, allowing Basil to lead him through the familiar labyrinth of streets that was Verdura. It was only after they had stepped back onto the main road and passed Emerald Square that Riolu realized that Basil was leading him out of the city the same way they had first come in.

"Where are we going, Basil?" he asked.

Basil turned to look back at Riolu as he walked and replied, "To the clearing I first found you in. It's removed from the city and it's open, so it will be the perfect place for us to start training. Most people would go to Machoke's Dojo in the marketplace, but that's really more for people who already know how to fight but just want to get better."

Basil continued to lead Riolu through the city until they exited the outskirts. Finding the path toward the clearing, they began to walk through the forest. As they walked, the trees overhead gradually grew shorter and less dense. At first, the two of them were silent as they followed the path. The silence was broken when Basil decided to use the walk as an opportunity to test Riolu's knowledge.

"Okay," Basil said. "What types does a fighting type like you have a natural disadvantage against when they attack you?"

Riolu thought for a moment, recalling the time that he spent learning how his own type relates to others. "My type is weak against flying, psychic, and fairy types," he replied, hoping that he had not forgotten anything. He was pleased to see Basil give a satisfied nod before continuing the pop quiz.

"What types would you have an advantage over if you attacked them?" Basil asked.

Riolu struggled to remember the answer. He could remember asking Basil about his type advantages just a few days before, but he found himself unable to remember all of the answer that he had actually received. After several seconds of silence, he tentatively answered, "Normal, steel, and… ice?"

"Almost," Basil said. "Those three were right, but you're missing two. Fighting-type attacks do have an advantage when used on normal, steel, and ice types, but they're also good against dark and rock types."

Riolu mentally kicked himself for his error. He could remember Basil telling him all five of the types that were weak against fighting-type moves now that he had been reminded, but he was frustrated with himself for needing a reminder. He made a mental note to study harder in the future to prevent a repeat of his mistake.

Basil seemed to be lost in his own thoughts. He kept leading the way forward through the forest, but he did not speak for some time. Eventually, he asked Riolu another question, "What is the best type of move to use against a Pokémon that is a bug and fighting type?"

Riolu pondered the question, trying to remember what weakness bug types and fighting types had in common. By focusing on the three weaknesses of fighting types that he had had reaffirmed a few minutes ago, he managed to figure out the answer.

"It would be flying type, wouldn't it?" Riolu responded. "Both fighting types and bug types have a weakness to flying-type attacks, so a Pokémon with both types would have an even larger weakness to them than a Pokémon that only has one of those two types."

Basil grinned and nodded at Riolu. "Yep!" he cheerfully replied. "I think that should do it for now. It sounds like you're getting a pretty good grip on how Pokémon types work."

Riolu began to focus more on his surroundings, realizing that the forest around him had started to look very familiar. The sizes of the trees were relatively normal, bearing little resemblance to the towering trees in Verdura. They were spread out enough from one another for Riolu to look up and directly see the sun shining overhead. It was clear that they were getting very close to their destination.

Basil and Riolu arrived at the clearing that Riolu had first woken up in. It appeared to have been completely undisturbed since the last time Riolu had seen it, as though it had been frozen in time while he was away. The rustling of leaves in the trees ringing the clearing was the only motion in the area. Riolu almost felt reluctant to disturb the tranquil stillness around him.

Basil turned to Riolu. "Let's go ahead and start," he said, pulling Riolu out of his reverie. Basil swiftly crossed the clearing. Reaching the center, he turned around and adopted a battle stance.

"Wait!" Riolu shouted, startled by Basil's haste. Basil paused, but did not change his stance. "Basil, I don't know how to fight! Were you just going to start attacking me?!"

Basil hesitated. "Well, how else do you think you're going to learn?" he asked.

"You need to teach me!" Riolu exclaimed. "We can't just start fighting! How am I supposed to know what to do without any preparation?"

"Fighting is supposed to come naturally to Pokémon," Basil said. "Once we start fighting, your instincts should kick in. That's how most Pokémon learn how to fight."

"But I'm _not_ a Pokémon, don't you remember? I'm a human. I don't have any fighting instincts!" Riolu responded, his panic becoming increasingly evident in his voice.

"Well," Basil said, "you're a Pokémon now. I just thought that the instincts you need would come with the body. I don't know how you're going to learn to fight if we don't actually do it. As far as I know, fighting isn't really something that you learn about doing before you do it." He pondered their predicament for a moment before continuing, "Well, how about this? We'll do it my way, and if that doesn't work, we'll try to find another way for you to learn to fight."

Riolu considered Basil's proposal. He did not think that a fight against Basil would do him much good, as he lacked any fighting experience, at least as far as he was able to remember. It seemed to him that he would need more preparation before he could attempt an actual fight, even one meant solely for practice. However, he could not think of any other way for him to learn to fight. As much as it pained Riolu to admit, Basil was probably right.

Riolu sighed. "Fine, we'll do it your way," he said reluctantly.

Basil grinned. "Great!" he replied. "Let's start!"

Without warning, Basil charged at Riolu. Riolu was completely unprepared, scrambling to think of the appropriate response to Basil's aggressive approach. However, his lack of experience left him unable to think quickly enough. Before Riolu could even begin to conceive of an effective counter, Basil was already upon him.

Closing the gap between them, Basil leapt into the air and swung his bulbous tail at Riolu. Seeing nothing else he could do, Riolu simply braced himself for the blow. He held his arms in front of his face in a weak attempt to protect it.

When Basil's tail made contact with Riolu's arms and face, they erupted in pain. Riolu lost his balance and fell backward, dropping to the ground. He quickly pulled himself up into a sitting position.

Something seemed off to him. Basil's hit hurt much more than he thought that it should have. Riolu realized that this was the first time he had been hit by one of the moves that he had learned about over the past few days. Even seemingly mundane attacks such as Tackle and Pound were augmented by some sort of internal energy, making them stronger than one would normally expect.

"Come on, Riolu, you're going to have to do better than that if we're going to be in a Royal Squad," Basil said. "We won't have a chance if you don't know how to block, dodge, and use moves. Let's try again. This time, just focus on not letting me hit you."

"I don't think I can even manage that," Riolu muttered, disheartened by his complete lack of success.

An optimistic grin found its way onto Basil's face. "Don't worry, I know you can! Like I said, your body has to come with _some_ fighting instincts. Not to mention the fact that you're a fighting type, so this sort of hand-to-hand combat should be the best way to bring out your instincts," he replied.

Basil suddenly lunged at Riolu, sending a swift jab at his head. Without thinking, Riolu leaned to the side, allowing the punch to sail harmlessly past him. Not giving Riolu any time to think of what to do next, Basil spun on his heel and tried to hit Riolu with his tail again.

Realizing that Basil was using Pound again, Riolu jumped back, causing the attack to miss. Upon making contact with the ground, however, Riolu lost his balance and fell. He landed awkwardly on his tail, causing pain to lance up the appendage.

Basil stopped. "That was great!" he exclaimed. "You managed to dodge my attacks. I knew you had to have some natural fighting instincts." He paused for a moment, then chuckled, "That landing at the end needed some work, though."

Riolu seriously doubted that instinct had had anything to do with what had just happened. He had just been sloppily trying to get out of the way of Basil's attacks, and hadn't even been able to land from a jump properly.

' _Still,'_ he thought, _'I guess it's better than letting him hit me again.'_ Despite the clumsiness with which he had evaded Basil, he could at least give himself the satisfaction of saying that he had technically avoided all of Basil's attacks. His constantly throbbing tail, however, served as a painful reminder that he still had a long way to go.

"Alright," Basil said, "let's go again." He rushed at Riolu again and attempted to punch him. Like the last time, Riolu managed to avoid the sudden attack. This time, however, Basil did not pull his punch back after it missed. Instead, he lunged forward with his entire body, slamming into Riolu and bringing them both to the ground.

Riolu was caught completely by surprise by this sudden change of tactics and could not adapt quickly enough. A few moments later, he was lying on the ground, pinned down by Basil. Basil looked down at him in triumph, a self-satisfied smile plastered on his face.

' _Are we doing this to make me a better fighter, or just for Basil's amusement?'_ Riolu wondered. He was becoming increasingly irritated with this pointless exercise. _'Can't he see that this isn't helping me at all? Why are we still doing this?'_

Basil stood up, relieving the pressure on Riolu's body. Pulling Riolu up by the arm, he said, "This may take a while, but I'm sure you'll get the hang of this soon. The fact that you've managed to dodge me a few times must mean we're making some progress, right?"

Riolu could not have disagreed more. _'Of course not!'_ he wanted to yell, _'I haven't been doing anything right! So what if I can get lucky and dodge one punch? If I can become a member of a Royal Squad with skills like these, then they have really lax standards.'_

Somehow, Basil seemed to detect Riolu's pessimism. "Don't get discouraged," he said. "You just need more practice. We're going to make you a great fighter, and then forming a Royal Squad will be easy."

Temporarily pushing his skepticism aside, Riolu sighed. "Alright," he said half-heartedly, "let's try again."

Basil grinned. "That's the spirit!" he replied.

* * *

Riolu lay on the ground panting, the weight of exhaustion holding his beaten body firmly in place. He was trying to recover from Basil's most recent barrage of attacks. This brutal treatment had been repeated constantly over the course of the day. To Riolu's relief, he was beginning to show some improvement in defending against Basil's attacks, although progress was slow. He was able to dodge the first few times that Basil attacked him, but he had difficulty staying balanced while simultaneously focusing on what Basil was doing. This made it nearly impossible for Riolu to evade Basil for long.

Basil looked up at the sky and said, "It's starting to get close to sunset. I think we can go one more time, and then we have to get back to Verdura."

Riolu groaned and slowly pulled himself up, his muscles screaming in protest. Realizing that the tortuous training session was almost at its end, Riolu reluctantly replied, "Alright, let's do it."

Basil immediately jumped into the air and attempted to strike Riolu with a Pound attack. Jumping to the side, Riolu evaded the attack. Adjusting to Riolu's dodge, Basil spun on his heel and tried to kick Riolu's legs out from under him. Riolu jumped backwards to get outside of Basil's range.

After taking a brief moment to get his bearings, Riolu saw Basil advancing toward him again. Basil tried to deliver a quick punch to Riolu's head. Riolu narrowly avoided the punch, but was unprepared when Basil's knee slammed into his stomach. The air was driven out of Riolu's body and he fell to his knees, gasping for breath.

Basil grinned triumphantly and attempted another Pound. However, Riolu saw Basil's next move coming and put up his arms in defense, blocking Basil's tail with the bony protrusions on his arms.

Basil's eyes widened in surprise at Riolu's successful defense. Clearly, he had been anticipating a quick and easy finish to the mock battle. Riolu decided that he had been practicing defense long enough, and now it was time to put the pressure on Basil for a change.

Riolu lunged at Basil, trying to tackle him to the ground. To Riolu's surprise, Basil nimbly sidestepped his attempt at an attack and tripped him. Riolu lay on the ground, too tired to get back up. His exhausted limbs felt like enormous rocks had been tied to them, leaving him practically immobile. Basil strode over to him and pulled him to his feet.

"Good job with defense," Basil said. "I didn't think you'd be able to block that last Pound. It's pretty clear that you're not quite ready for offense yet, though."

Riolu was too out of breath to respond. Seeing that he wouldn't be receiving a reply from Riolu, Basil grabbed his arm and began pulling him toward the path leading back to Verdura.

"Come on," he said. "It's time to go back."

Riolu allowed Basil to guide him until he had recovered from his most recent beating. Once he was able to breathe normally again, he asked Basil, "How many more times are we going to have to do that before we're ready to start a squad?"

"Well," Basil answered, "there's no way to know for sure, but we'll definitely have to keep coming back here each day to train. It could take weeks before we can be sure that we have a chance of being accepted."

Riolu groaned inwardly at this statement. He knew that they were going to have to do a lot of training in order to make him a good enough fighter, but the thought of having to endure such brutal punishment on a daily basis was beyond unpleasant.

Basil and Riolu walked alongside one another in silence for a long time. Finally, they crested the final hill and reached Verdura. The sun was just beginning to set, painting the capital a warm orange. Relief washed over Riolu when he saw the sprawling city; they were almost done walking.

Riolu's relief was quickly stifled by the dense crowds of Pokémon pushing and shoving one another in the hopes of reaching their homes before the sun completed its descent into the horizon. By the time Riolu and Basil reached Emerald Square, the setting sun's orange glow had been consumed by the inky darkness of night.

The moon shone overhead, illuminating the square. The gem on top of the fountain gleamed dimly as the moonlight passed through it. Although the emerald light radiating from the gem was insufficient to provide lighting to the entire plaza, Riolu felt some of his weariness temporarily evaporate as he stared at its luminous beauty. Unfortunately, this soothing sensation did not last very long after Basil and Riolu left Emerald Square, and Riolu's fatigue quickly returned.

Riolu still found walking within the city overwhelming, its densely packed buildings and bustling crowds generating a strong feeling of claustrophobia. It felt as though he were in constant danger of being crushed by a powerful, uncontrollable monster. These disconcerting thoughts dissipated when Basil's house came into view. The thought of a meal and a night of rest instantly filled Riolu with eager anticipation.

Basil and Riolu each wolfed down an apple before going up to the second floor to go to bed. Lying on his red cushion, Riolu felt himself grow increasingly optimistic. His doubts about developing sufficient fighting skills and forming a Royal Squad with Basil faded into a blank haze as he drifted off to sleep.

"Good night, Riolu," he heard Basil say. "I'm really looking forward to being part of a squad with you."

If Basil said more, Riolu could not hear it. Sleep had already claimed him in its tender embrace.

* * *

He had to complete his mission. He could not allow himself to fail.

A yellow fox sprinted through the dark forest, the moon barely providing sufficient light for him to find his way. His spiky fur was matted with sweat and blood. The ugly gash in his side burned fiercely with every pace, but he could not allow it to stop him. The information he was carrying was too crucial to be lost.

More than anything, he wanted to stop. He wanted to rest and treat his injury. The pain from the wound threatened to overwhelm him at any moment. Each panicked step felt like it would be his last. But he could not slow down. They were coming.

He had been moving as quickly as he could, but it wasn't enough. He needed to run faster. He tapped into his element to quicken his pace, adding whatever he could to his depleted reserves of energy. Electricity sparked on his pelt as he tried to stimulate his already drained muscles. He had to overcome his fatigue and move faster. He needed to reach his destination. They were coming.

The forest became a blur of nondescript greens and browns all blending together as he sprinted faster than he had ever run before. He realized that he was going to make it. This pace would allow him to complete his mission. But fate was cruel. A tree root materialized from the dark haze, catching his front paw and sending him sprawling to the ground. The pain in his side intensified as blood gushed from his wound. He heard a loud crack as his body slammed into a root and felt a burning pain in his chest. He realized that several of his ribs were now broken, but it didn't matter. He had to keep running. They were coming.

He tried to stand, but he fell to the ground, a sharp pain in his front leg joining the agony in his side and ribcage. He could not run anymore. But he had to try. He could not fail to reach his objective. He struggled to his feet and began to stumble in the direction of his destination. He succumbed to his injuries after a few steps, his battered body incapable of supporting its own weight. He heard footsteps approaching from behind. He had to get away somehow. He had to complete his mission. But he could not.

They were coming.


	4. Chapter 4: The Opportunity

Basil and Riolu stood facing each other, both panting quietly. They remained motionless for several seconds, allowing themselves a moment to partially recover from their fatigue. Their ragged breathing and the faint rustling of leaves in the breeze were the only sounds in the clearing.

Without warning, Basil charged at Riolu. He used Pound, swinging his tail at the former human. Riolu crossed his arms in front of his head, using the natural armor in his wrists to block the attack. Basil then attempted a sweeping kick, which Riolu quickly dodged. Basil tried to punch Riolu several times, but Riolu managed to avoid or deflect each one.

Throwing caution to the wind, Basil jumped at Riolu, attempting to unbalance him and tackle him to the ground. Realizing Basil's intentions, Riolu jumped backward to evade the lunge. Basil landed on the ground hard, leaving himself exposed to a counterattack.

Riolu hesitated. He and Basil had been working together to develop his defensive skills until he was able to successfully defend himself against almost all of Basil's attacks. However, they had neglected offense so far, leaving him uncertain of how to take advantage of Basil's momentary vulnerability.

Before Riolu could devise an offensive strategy, Basil had already recovered. He jumped to his feet and charged at Riolu, using Pound again. Riolu quickly blocked the attack with his arms, but his lapse in concentration, however brief, cost him greatly. Noticing the sloppiness of Riolu's hasty defense, Basil delivered a quick punch to his gut.

The hit broke through Riolu's defense, leaving him vulnerable to another Pound from Basil. Riolu fell to the ground, tired and in pain.

Basil shifted to a more relaxed stance. "You did a good job with defense until that last part," he commented. "I guess we should start working on your offensive fighting now. That way you'll know what to do the next time you have an opportunity like that."

Riolu was surprised by Basil's sudden change in focus. He had been repeatedly requesting that they practice his offensive skills and use of moves the whole day. Every time he brought it up, Basil simply shrugged and said that it was more important to develop Riolu's defensive skills first.

"I thought we were focusing on defense," Riolu said.

"We were," Basil replied, "but I think your defense has gotten good enough for now. Besides, you messed up in that last practice because you didn't know what to do when you had a chance to attack. We won't be able to be Royal Squad members if you only have defensive skills. Offense is just as important. I think it's time to start focusing more on that. Learning how to use moves should be a pretty good start, don't you think?"

This idea excited Riolu. He was very eager to learn how to use his moves and attack an opponent. Although he understood the importance of defense, he really wanted to master offense.

"Alright, how do I learn how to use moves?" Riolu asked.

"Well," Basil answered, "it's just like what I said when we first started. I don't really know how you'll learn unless we just start practicing and let your instincts kick in."

Riolu was skeptical that this strategy would teach him to use moves. Although it worked fairly well to develop his defense, Riolu thought that using moves had to be different, since they relied on some sort of internal energy. Without already knowing how to access that energy, Riolu doubted that he would be able to use his moves. However, he couldn't think of any alternative to their previous training strategy.

Riolu sighed. "Fine, let's do it," he reluctantly responded.

"Alright!" Basil replied. "Remember, all Pokémon have the ability to tap into different sorts of energy. That energy is what lets us use our moves. You need to find the energy in your body and unleash it to use a move. Attack me whenever you're ready."

Riolu tried to block out everything around him, hoping to attain a level of concentration that would allow him to find the energy buried within him. For several seconds, he stood motionless, trying to locate the energy. He soon began to feel that his efforts were futile, as he could not sense anything that felt like some sort of untapped energy source in his body.

"Riolu?" Basil said. "Are we going to start or not? I'm waiting for you to make the first move."

Riolu found himself somewhat irritated by his partner's impatience. _'I'm trying to figure out what to do!'_ he thought to himself indignantly. _'I wasn't just born with these abilities like a real Pokémon. Even if I can't remember being a human, these moves still aren't natural to me.'_

Basil seemed to sense Riolu's agitation. "I'm not trying to rush you or anything," he assured Riolu. "I just don't think you'll be able to use moves and fight if you don't try. Sitting around thinking about it isn't going to help. You just have to do it."

"I'm trying to figure out how to start," Riolu responded. "I can't practice using moves if I don't know how to use any in the first place."

Basil gave a frustrated sigh. "I keep telling you, you have to learn these sorts of things by trying them and letting instinct take over. Moves are second nature to Pokémon. Even if you used to be a human, I really think that the way for you to learn how to use moves is to try and figure it out through practice."

Riolu realized that Basil would not be persuaded. Resigning himself to the fact that he would have to do things Basil's way, he said, "Fine. Let's do it."

Basil grinned and got into his battle stance, preparing himself for Riolu to attack. "Come on," he said. "The sooner you start, the sooner you'll get the hang of using moves."

Seeing no other options, Riolu reluctantly complied. He charged at Basil, unsure of what to do even as he approached the Treecko. Upon reaching Basil, Riolu tried to punch him. However, Basil anticipated the attack and dodged backward, stepping outside of Riolu's range. Taking a moment to recover, Riolu attempted another quick jab at Basil, with the same result.

"Come on, Riolu, you can do better than that," Basil taunted.

Riolu shrugged off Basil's teasing and rushed at him again, still desperately trying to find the energy within himself that would fuel his moves. He aimed another punch at Basil's cheekbone. Basil ducked, causing Riolu's fist to sail harmlessly over his head.

' _I need to do something to catch him by surprise if I'm ever going to hit him,'_ Riolu thought. _'What can I do?'_

He then thought of the bony protrusions on the backs of his paws. _'Those are good for defense, but maybe I can also use them to attack,'_ he reasoned.

Riolu tried to punch Basil again, and again Basil dodged the attack. This time, however, Riolu immediately swung his other arm at Basil, sending the bump on his wrist hurtling toward the Treecko. Caught off guard by the sudden change of tactics, Basil received a hard blow to the head, the force knocking him off of his feet and sending him to the ground.

The sweet ecstasy of triumph flooded through Riolu's mind. It was satisfying to have succeeded in hitting his more experienced and evasive friend.

Basil sat up, clutching his head. "Ow, that really hurt!" he complained. "Good job, though, I guess. You still haven't used a real move though, so that barely counts."

Basil's dismissal of Riolu's accomplishment agitated him. _'Come on,'_ he thought. _'Can't you at least let me have some self-satisfaction?'_

"There's no way we're going to be able to form a Royal Squad if you can't even use a basic move," Basil said. "We have to keep practicing until you can do it."

Riolu realized that Basil would view nothing less than the use of an actual move as a success. Irritated by his friend's attitude, he immediately charged, not giving Basil a chance to prepare.

Despite the suddenness of Riolu's aggression, Basil successfully blocked or dodged each of the punches that Riolu tried to hit him with.

"That can't be all that you can do," Basil teased. "You have to do way better to be good enough. Why don't you mix things up a little? Just punching at me is too predictable."

Riolu's irritation was approaching the level of anger. _'I'm trying as hard as I can!'_ he almost screamed out loud.

Deciding to take a risk, Riolu attempted to kick Basil, but the Treecko easily blocked Riolu's leg with one of his arms.

"Nice try, but still not good enough," Basil said, grinning mockingly.

Riolu was becoming increasingly frustrated with Basil's insults and his own lack of success. He could feel his reason beginning to give way, giving more control to his primal impulses. As Riolu felt his emotions intensify, he felt something else, like some sort of pressure in his body. It disappeared in an instant, leaving him unsure of whether it had been a real sensation or simply a figment of his imagination.

As Riolu kept trying and failing to land a hit on Basil, he felt the pressure begin to rise again. As Riolu continued, the sensation changed as the pressure released. It felt as though a gate had been opened within his body, allowing power to escape and flow through Riolu's veins. After a few moments, Riolu's entire body was inundated with the mysterious energy. Riolu found himself unable to focus on anything other than the need to release the energy before it overwhelmed him.

Acting almost without any conscious thought, Riolu dashed at Basil. However, he was suddenly moving much faster than he ever had before. Within seconds, Riolu had already slammed into Basil with astounding force. The force of the attack threw Basil backwards through the air, landing with a soft thump on the clearing's grassy carpet. Riolu suddenly realized that he had just used a move for the first time in his life.

Basil pulled himself to his feet. "That was great!" he exclaimed. "I knew you could do it! At this rate, we'll be a Royal Squad in no time!"

"What move was that?" Riolu asked, curious to know what power he had just unlocked.

"That was Quick Attack," Basil replied. "I don't think I really need to explain why it's called that. It's a lot like Tackle, but it's stronger and it makes you move really fast."

Riolu could barely believe what had just happened. Only a moment ago, he had been struggling to find the internal energy to fuel his moves. Now he could feel it inside himself. It had receded with the conclusion of Riolu's attack, but the energy was definitely still there, lying dormant within his body.

"I told you my plan would work," Basil said cheekily. "I figured that maybe if I could get you worked up enough during the fight, you'd find the energy for your moves. It looks like I was right, after all."

"Alright, I admit it. You were right," Riolu conceded with reluctance.

"So," Basil said, "do you think you can do that again?"

Riolu grinned widely. "Yeah!" he eagerly replied. "Now that I've used a move once, it seems so easy! I know how to find the energy in my body, so now I just have to use it."

"Alright!" Basil said. "Let's do it!"

* * *

Riolu and Basil entered the outskirts of Verdura. It was the middle of the afternoon, and the sun's rays shone through the green foliage overhead. The light pervaded the city streets, bringing to them a sense of warmth and comfort. The streets themselves were not as congested as they typically were, as the daily rush of Pokémon trying to return to their homes had yet to begin.

The warmth and relative tranquility in the streets served to bolster Riolu's already cheerful mood. His training session with Basil had been the most successful of their attempts by far, as he had learned how to use his moves at last.

' _It finally feels like we're making some actual progress,'_ he thought. _'Before, it felt like everything was going so slowly. I guess I was gradually getting better at fighting, but this time there was a real improvement.'_

After Riolu's successful use of Quick Attack, he and Basil spent the rest of the day practicing basic offense, as well as move use. During the training session, Riolu also added another move to his meager repertoire. Basil identified the ability as Endure, saying that it was a defensive move that would allow Riolu to withstand strong attacks.

Basil and Riolu walked alongside one another in the street, eagerly discussing the progress they had made.

"I can't believe things are going so well now!" Basil happily exclaimed. "As soon as you first figured out how to use Quick Attack, everything just went so smoothly. It looks like your fighting instincts are finally starting to kick in."

Riolu grinned. "It just all seemed to make sense all of a sudden," he said. "Maybe that was my instinct taking over. I don't know. I haven't always been a Pokémon and I can't remember being a human, so how would I be able to tell?"

"Well, whatever it was, it sure seems to be working. At this rate, we'll be able to form a Royal Squad in no time." Basil replied.

Riolu and Basil entered Emerald Square. The gem on the fountain glowed with the sun's light, casting an emerald radiance on its stone surroundings. Riolu felt a wave of calm wash over him the moment he stepped within its boundaries. All of his worries, already greatly diminished by his newfound optimism, were quickly banished by the serenity of the plaza.

' _Basil is right,'_ he thought. _'Everything is going great. I'm becoming a better fighter, which means that we'll be ready to start a Royal Squad soon. After everything he's told me about Royal Squads, I actually can't wait. I'm really looking forward to forming one.'_

As these thoughts sailed through Riolu's mind, he and Basil crossed Emerald Square at a leisurely pace. They had almost reached the fountain in the center of the square when a loud voice caught Riolu's attention. The voice was high-pitched but undoubtedly male, suggesting that the speaker was fairly young. It was not directed specifically at Riolu or any other individual within the plaza, but was instead being projected across the space, calling to everybody within earshot.

Turning toward the speaker, Riolu saw that it was a short, bipedal Pokémon with a mostly brown body. Its head and back were covered by a green shell, which extended to cover most of its tail, the remainder of which was orange. Thanks to the time he spent studying, Riolu was able to identify the Pokémon as a Chespin.

"Breaking news!" the Chespin cried. "The queen herself is calling for volunteers for Royal Squads! Buy a paper to read about it!"

This announcement immediately piqued Riolu's interest. Looking at his partner, he could see that Basil was similarly affected. His eyes seemed to gleam with excited energy at the mention of Royal Squads. Basil immediately began approaching the Chespin, clearly intent on purchasing a newspaper to find out more.

By the time Basil reached the Chespin, a small crowd of interested passerby had already formed. Pushing through the heterogeneous collection of Pokémon, Basil spoke to the Chespin briefly before giving him a few coins from his money pouch. In exchange, the Chespin pulled a newspaper from a stack almost double his own height and gave it to Basil. Basil returned to Riolu with the newspaper in tow.

"I don't know what's going on, but it sounds like an opportunity for us," he said. "Let's get home quickly so we can find out what this is all about."

Basil and Riolu dashed back to Basil's house, winding through the familiar route from Emerald Square to his home. Upon reaching the house, they rushed to unlock the door and get inside. Sitting at the small table in the bottom floor, Basil began to read the newspaper article concerning Royal Squad recruitment aloud to Riolu.

"Queen calls for Royal Squad members," he read. "Queen Elise has issued a proclamation that the Royal Squad recruitment process is to be temporarily abbreviated due to an increase in the necessity for Royal Squad operations. Although the queen did not indicate the cause for a greater need for Royal Squads, it is widely speculated that the cause is closely related to the recent emergence of mystery dungeons in the Vulnus region.

"The first reports of mystery dungeons in Vulnus began several months ago. Although these reports initially seemed to be nothing more than isolated rumors, investigations by Royal Squads confirmed that mystery dungeons have been appearing throughout Amaros. It was later confirmed that these anomalies have been appearing in the other kingdoms of Vulnus.

"The cause of the appearance of mystery dungeons in Vulnus is currently unknown. Speculation regarding the source of these anomalies varies widely. It is suspected that the discovery of the true cause, as well as the containment of the effects, of the presence of mystery dungeons in Vulnus is the primary motivation behind the queen's call for new recruits for Royal Squads. The queen asks that any interested volunteers attend an assessment to take place at Ivory Palace in three days."

Basil looked up from the article, elation pervading his expression. "This is it!" he exclaimed. "This is our chance to form a Royal Squad! We'll go to the assessment, get recruited, and register our own team!"

Despite Basil's enthusiasm, Riolu was feeling very uncertain. Although their training sessions were finally showing significant improvement, he was worried that his skills would be insufficient to meet the standards of a Royal Squad. After all, he had only learned to use basic moves earlier that day. Surely someone so lacking in experience would not be considered an ideal candidate for a Royal Squad.

Basil seemed to notice Riolu's concern, as he was quick to assure him, "Don't worry about being good enough. We still have three days to train. If we work really hard every day until the assessment, we'll be recruited for sure!"

"You're right," Riolu responded, trying to convince himself that everything would work out that way. "I'm sure everything will be fine."

It was beginning to get late. The orange glow of sunset was already beginning to flow through the windows by the end of the discussion. Riolu decided to put what little remained of the day to good use by continuing to study the various species of Pokémon. He climbed the ladder and sat at the desk in the second floor, on which numerous papers were already scattered.

Leaning onto the dark wood of the desk, Riolu studied page after page of information, continuing long after the final rays of the sun had fled below the horizon. By the time Riolu went to sleep, his head felt as though it were bursting at the seams with all of the knowledge that he had forced into it.

* * *

Riolu awoke from a blissfully dreamless sleep, the warm rays of the morning sun greeting him. For several minutes, he remained motionless on his bed, hoping to savor the last vestiges of sleep that clung to his mind as he gradually regained his alertness. He and Basil had spent the past few days working themselves to the bone, and Riolu was eager for any opportunity to rest that presented itself. After lying in bed for some time, Riolu remembered the reason that he and Basil had been training so vigorously.

' _That's right!'_ he realized with a shock. _'The assessment is today!'_

Riolu sat up quickly, intending to rouse Basil. When he turned to wake Basil up, he realized that he was alone in the room. Basil was nowhere to be seen. A faint impression remained in his green bed, but the Treecko himself had already vacated the cushion.

"Basil?" Riolu called, hoping for a response from downstairs. There was no answer from below.

Rising from his bed, Riolu approached the ladder leading downstairs. He climbed down the ladder and checked the first floor of the house for any signs of his friend's whereabouts. After a brief search, Riolu found a small note, presumably left by Basil. It took a few moments, but Riolu managed to decipher the footprint runes. It read:

 _Riolu,  
_ _I'm going to the marketplace to grab a few things. I will be back soon. Big day! I'm really looking forward to the assessment. We need to make sure to do the best we can. If we don't make it, just remember that it isn't the end of the world. We can always try again later. I don't think we'll have to do that, though, because we've been working so hard this whole time that there's no way we won't be accepted.  
_ _~Basil_

Riolu was pleased with himself for being able to read the note. _'At least some of the things we've been doing seem to be paying off,'_ he thought. _'Now I guess we're going to see if the rest will.'_

Riolu chose to occupy himself while waiting for Basil to return by reviewing the information on Pokémon and their methods of combat that he had been studying. He climbed up the ladder and immersed himself in the notes scattered on the surface of Basil's desk. There was no way to be sure what he would need to know for the assessment, so he tried to quickly review as much as he possibly could.

' _I don't even know what sort of assessment this is going to be,'_ he realized. _'Will it be a test on knowledge? Fighting? Both? How can I be prepared for this if I don't have any clue what I'm going to have to do?'_

These thoughts filled Riolu with nervous apprehension. Various scenarios began to cycle through his mind, each more unpleasant than its predecessor. The chaotic cyclone of pessimism continued to fill Riolu's imagination with every negative outcome it could conjure until the sound of the front door opening and closing freed Riolu from his thoughts.

"Riolu, are you awake yet?" Basil shouted from below.

Riolu looked up from his notes and replied, "Yeah! I'm coming down!"

Riolu stood up and climbed down the ladder. Basil was standing in the center of the room with a bag in his hands.

"Hey Riolu, today's the day!" Basil said cheerfully. "I got us some breakfast so that we'll be at full strength for the assessment. Eat quickly, though, because I think we have to leave really soon if we want to get to Ivory Palace in time."

Basil overturned the bag in his hands onto the table. A colorful assortment of apples and various berries tumbled out, their aromas causing Riolu's mouth to water. Basil and Riolu immediately began to feast on the array of fruits, devouring it all at a rapid pace. Riolu quickly lost track of how many fruits he had eaten as he and Basil wolfed down the food.

Once the last of the food had been consumed, Basil jumped to his feet and said, "We need to get going. If we wait much longer, we'll miss the assessment."

The two friends hurriedly gathered what meager supplies they had that they believed could be of use during the assessment and left the house. They ran through the familiar alleys and streets to reach Emerald Square. Instead of taking their usual route toward the outskirts of Verdura, however, they instead turned to their right and raced to the palace of white stone in the heart of the city.

Hurrying through unfamiliar streets, Riolu was astounded by the amount of time it took to reach Ivory Palace. From Emerald Square, its great size gave him the impression that it was not very far away. However, this proved to be incorrect. After traveling a great distance, the two breathless Pokémon finally reached Ivory Palace.

If the castle had seemed to be large from a distance, it appeared gargantuan when in close proximity to it. Its high walls loomed over the surrounding buildings, casting a long shadow over them. Riolu noticed that none of the buildings in the general vicinity of the palace seemed to be residential; the area was dominated by various shops and buildings tied to the government.

Basil and Riolu crossed a long stretch of cobblestone ending with the tall, dark doors of Ivory Palace. The doors were made of black stone, contrasting sharply with the stark white of the palace's walls. Silver vines meandered across the doors, twisting and curling along their surfaces. As they approached, the doors seemed to grow taller, towering over them. Riolu could not imagine why the doors were made to be so large. The only thing he could say for certain was that he had no desire to meet whatever goliath they had been designed to accommodate.

The massive doors were ajar, providing an entrance for any Pokémon attending the Royal Squad assessment. Even though the doors had only been partially opened, the gap between them still seemed large enough to comfortably fit multiple Pokémon standing shoulder to shoulder.

Riolu's nervousness intensified as he and Basil crossed the threshold of the enormous doors. He felt as though he could burst into a hysterical panic at any moment. Looking over, he saw that Basil was not faring much better; the Treecko's hesitation was clearly displayed in his facial expression and nervous body movements. Basil's eyes were stretched much wider than normal, and his steps had become slow and uncertain, considerably shortening his gait.

The nervousness of his typically optimistic companion did little to ease Riolu's nerves. He had never seen Basil look so thoroughly terrified by anything. Basil's obvious unease exacerbated Riolu's own nervousness. Just as Riolu's anxiety was reaching a crescendo, it was disrupted by a voice.

"Hello, are you here for the recruit assessment?" the voice inquired.

Turning to his right, Riolu saw a small mammalian Pokémon. The majority of its body was covered in short gray fur, but it also had several long tufts of pristine white fur. Two of the tufts of fur were curled behind the Pokémon's long ears, emerging on either side of its body. Another tuft seemed to form a furry scarf around its neck. The Pokémon had a fluffy white tail. After a few moments of thinking, Riolu identified the Pokémon as a Cinccino.

"You just made it," the Cinccino said in a cheery, feminine voice. "If you were just a few minutes later, I'm not sure that they'd let you apply. Follow me. I'll lead you to where the assessment is being conducted."

A nervous grin passed over Basil's face. "Thank you, ma'am," he said. "Lead the way."

The Cinccino turned around and strode into the courtyard in between the palace and the wall surrounding it. Basil and Riolu followed her closely, marveling at the incredible scale of Ivory Palace. The courtyard was a massive outdoor space, with a combination of pale cobblestone paths and expansive grass lawns covering the ground. A white fountain stood proudly in the center of the courtyard, scintillating water gushing from its orifices like liquid silver. White flowers bordered the cobblestone pathways that crossed the courtyard.

The three Pokémon approached a tall wall that split the courtyard, connecting the central palace to the outer wall. A small wooden door was built into the white wall. Opening the door, the Cinccino led Basil and Riolu into the wall. There was a narrow, dimly lit corridor contained within the interior of the wall. Across the hall was a second door, presumably leading outside to another courtyard. Torches lined the walls at regular intervals, their flickering flames casting long, distorted shadows across the stone walls.

The Cinccino stopped and turned to Basil and Riolu. "This is where we part ways," she said. "I have my own duties to take care of. If you two go through this door, you'll be in the training grounds. That's where the assessment is being held. Good luck you two!"

She turned around and walked down the corridor toward the palace, leaving Basil and Riolu alone in the empty hall. They stood motionless, each silently willing the other to take the first step and open the door in front of them. Evidently realizing that Riolu's nervousness had paralyzed him, Basil sighed and stepped forward.

"This is the moment we've been waiting for," he said. "We can't let our nerves get the best of us now that we're so close to forming a Royal Squad. It's now or never!"

Steeling his resolve, Riolu stepped forward as Basil grabbed the door handle and swung the door open. Blinding light streamed across the threshold as the pair of Pokémon walked through the door and into another spacious courtyard. The majority of the ground was covered in soft grass, with the exception of a circular patch of bare earth ringed by large brown tents. A few small buildings were clustered together in the shadow of the outer wall.

Basil and Riolu hurried toward the perimeter of the ring of tents, where a small crowd of Pokémon of various shapes, sizes, and colors had already gathered. A few turned toward them as they arrived, most likely trying to analyze their potential competition.

Basil and Riolu slowly pushed through the crowd to reach a position from which they could see the front of the group. Riolu found a spot that offered sufficient visibility, standing with Basil to his left and a Buneary to his right. The Buneary gave Riolu a friendly grin as he took his place next to her, momentarily boosting his confidence. His confidence plummeted when he heard an eerily familiar chuckle.

"What do we have here? Two little runts in way over their heads."

Looking ahead, Riolu saw a large purple Pokémon standing in front of the group of potential recruits. He was looking straight at Riolu with a sadistic grin covering his face. Riolu's blood ran cold when he realized who would be conducting the assessment.

The Pokémon turned to address the group as a whole. "Welcome to the assessment that will determine your eligibility to join a Royal Squad. You may all call me Nidoking. I will be assessing your skills to judge your ability to act as Royal Squad members. I cannot stress the importance of this assessment enough. After all," Nidoking turned his head to look directly into Riolu's eyes, "the outcome of this assessment may determine your fate."


	5. Chapter 5: The Trials, Part One

Any hope that Riolu had of succeeding in the assessment quickly dissipated the moment he realized who would be judging him. There was no mistaking the Nidoking that had harassed Riolu in the Kecleon Shop. His gruff voice, cruel grin, and long blue scarf were all permanently branded into Riolu's memory.

"This assessment will consist of several trials," Nidoking announced. "Each trial will be explained just before it begins so that you won't have any chance to prepare ahead of time or cheat to manipulate the results. One of the most crucial skills for members of Royal Squads to have is adaptability. If you can't pass a trial just because you weren't prepared enough for it, then you don't have what it takes to join a squad. I'm here to find out which of you will be good recruits, not to hold your hand every step of the way."

Riolu's spirits were sinking rapidly with every word. _'There's no way Nidoking is going to let me pass,'_ he thought. _'He thinks I'm a spy! We're doomed!'_

Riolu heard a voice in his left ear. He realized that his renewed panic had prevented him from noticing that Basil had leaned over to say something to him.

"Don't worry about Nidoking," Basil hurriedly whispered. "It doesn't matter who he is or what he thinks of you. We've been working too hard to not ace this assessment."

"How do you know?" Riolu replied hopelessly. "If he's conducting the assessment, I'm pretty sure that what he thinks of me is the _only_ thing that matters. If he doesn't trust me before we even start, I don't see how we'll be able to get through this."

Basil turned to look forward again. "We can't let him get in our way," he muttered. "We can't give up now that we're so close." Despite the hopefulness of Basil's words, Riolu could not help but suspect that the Treecko was trying reassure himself just as much as Riolu. Basil's worry was almost tangible.

Riolu turned to face Nidoking again. The enormous poison-type was glaring suspiciously at Basil and Riolu, having seen them whispering to one another upon recognizing him. Riolu could only imagine how conspiratorial the two of them must have appeared to Nidoking.

' _Everything I do in front of him will just make him more suspicious of me,'_ he realized. _'Is there anything I can do to convince him that I'm not a spy?'_

"As I was saying, it's time to begin the first part of the assessment," Nidoking said. "It will be very simple; each of you will have a mock battle with one other applicant. You don't have to win to be considered for acceptance, so be sure to show me everything you can do, regardless of who your opponent is. That being said, winning your fight definitely wouldn't hurt your chances. The fight will continue until one applicant can't fight anymore. The use of items is prohibited, but any moves are fair game. Any questions?"

The only response he received was silence, heavy with the anticipation of some of the assembled Pokémon and the apprehension of others. Seeing that the applicants were not going to ask him anything, Nidoking turned away and walked into one of the tents.

Looking to his right, Riolu saw that the Buneary standing next to him could barely contain her excitement. She seemed to be a moment away from leaping forward into the ring within the circle of tents. She noticed Riolu looking at her and began to talk to him.

"This is so exciting!" she whispered, enthusiasm pervading her voice. "We're all going to be Royal Squad members! I can't wait to see what incredible adventures we're going to have!"

The Pokémon on the Buneary's right turned to her and grabbed her arm, tugging her away from Riolu. It had a pink, round body with short arms and legs and a tightly curled tail. The Pokémon's ears were fairly large and had brown tips. It had a small, curly tuft of pink fur on the top of its head and a pair of very short wings on its back. Riolu had to think briefly before he could identify it as a Clefairy. The delay reminded him that he still had a lot to learn.

"Raila!" the Clefairy hissed. "Now is not the time! If you don't focus, then we aren't going to get to be Royal Squad members at all. You need to spend less time chatting with our competition and more time getting ready to fight."

The Buneary, Raila, turned to her companion and innocently replied, "But Nidoking just said that we don't have to win our fights to get in. That means that we can all still get along."

The Clefairy rolled her eyes. "Honestly, Raila," she said. "You're too nice for your own good. Don't let anybody beat you just because you think that they're about to be friends with you."

"Oh, come on!" Raila cheerfully replied, "You need to lighten up. Being on a team with you will be no fun if you're always being this serious."

The Clefairy turned away and irritably muttered something under her breath. Raila looked like she was going to respond, but she was interrupted by Nidoking before she had a chance to say anything.

Nidoking had retrieved a long wooden table from the tent. There was a large bowl on the table, along with a stack of thin strips of paper, a quill, and an inkwell. Nidoking gestured to the table and its contents as he spoke.

"Each applicant must write their name and species on a slip of paper and put it in this bowl. I will be determining the matchups for your battles by randomly selecting you in pairs from the bowl. Any applicant who fails to fill out a sheet will be omitted from the battles and will automatically fail," Nidoking announced.

Nidoking ushered the applicants into a single-file line in front of the table and had them place their slips in the bowl one at a time. Riolu's apprehension grew with every step that he took toward the table. Time blurred into a vague haze, endlessly dragging on until Riolu found himself standing at the table with the quill clutched in his trembling paw. Riolu suddenly realized that he had no idea what to write on the paper.

' _Nidoking said that we need to write our names and our species,'_ he thought. _'I can't remember my real name, and I've just been using the name of my species as a name until I can remember. I definitely can't write 'human' as my species, even if that's what I really am. What should I do?!'_

Painfully aware of the dozens of eyes drilling into the back of his skull, Riolu decided to write "Riolu" twice on the paper, since it was both the name of his current species and his personal name. He shakily wrote this down, trying to find a balance between writing quickly to minimize the time he spent as the center of attention and steadying his shaking paw as he wrote in sloppy footprint runes. His handwriting was far from aesthetically pleasing once he had finished, but it was legible.

Hurriedly dropping his slip into the bowl on the table, Riolu joined the Pokémon that had already submitted their names at the perimeter of a white circle that had been drawn on the ground inside the ring of tents.

Basil was next in line after Riolu. He hastily wrote his name and species down and dropped his paper in the bowl, quickly taking his place next to Riolu. Basil's movements were shaky, giving him an awkward gait. He took several deep breaths to try to pacify his frantic nerves.

After the last applicant, a composed Nuzleaf, had joined the ring of Pokémon, Nidoking picked up the bowl and carried it into the center of the ring. "The circle marked on the ground is the boundary of the area that you'll be fighting in," he said. "You are to remain within the circle at all times during your fight. If you are knocked out of the circle, you lose. During a fight, nobody that isn't fighting is allowed to enter the circle. Entering the circle during a fight means that you're disqualified. No exceptions, no excuses. Now, it's time to see who our first combatants will be."

Nidoking dug his claw into the bowl. He randomly mixed the slips of paper for several seconds before selecting one. His claw immediately dove back into the paper and grabbed a second slip, pulling both pieces of paper out. He placed the bowl on the ground and called out the names of the applicants he had selected.

"The first match will be Kheper the Heracross versus Mona the Clefairy," he announced.

Nidoking picked up the bowl and walked out of the arena. A large blue bug-type stomped into the circle, his yellow eyes gleaming with an eagerness to fight. Raila's pink companion walked forward at a slow, leisurely pace, projecting remarkable confidence considering the size of her opponent.

"Sorry, little girl," Kheper said. "But I think this is as far as you go. No hard feelings, okay?"

Mona smirked in response. "I wouldn't be so cocky if I were you," she replied. "In case you haven't noticed, I have the type advantage in this matchup."

"Type isn't everything," Kheper shot back.

"Neither is size."

"Are you two done gossiping yet?" Nidoking asked irritably. Mona and Kheper both fell silent. Nidoking waited a few seconds before continuing, "Since the two combatants seem to be ready, let's go ahead and get the fight started. Begin!"

Kheper immediately charged at Mona, pointing the long horn on his head directly at her. Mona seemed to be completely unfazed by the large Pokémon rapidly approaching her. Just before Kheper struck her with a Horn Attack, Mona leapt to her left, evading the attack. The Clefairy quickly countered with a powerful slap to Kheper's body, although it barely seemed to have any effect.

"Mona, what are you doing?" Raila nervously muttered from her spot near Riolu. "You know that Wake-Up Slap won't do much against a Heracross."

Kheper was quick to react to Mona's unsuccessful attack, dealing a powerful blow with Horn Attack. His attack was followed by a series of swift jabs at Mona with his horn. Mona succeeded in dodging each attack by using a move to reduce the size of her body.

Leaping back to put distance between herself and her opponent, Mona briefly paused, considering potential battle tactics. Quickly making a decision, she suddenly let out a loud cry. Riolu did not know why she had done this until he saw Kheper buckled over, as if in pain.

Looking at Mona, Riolu could see a confident smirk on her face and the light of victory shining in her eyes. He could not help feeling that she was a little too confident; the battle had just started, but she seemed to think that she had already won. His suspicions seemed to be confirmed when Kheper stood up again.

Kheper bellowed in rage and charged at Mona with his horn poised to strike once more. Mona was unprepared for the sudden aggression and took a direct hit. She was propelled through the air by the attack and landed dangerously close to the outside of the ring. She shakily pushed herself off the ground and regained her footing.

Mona let out another cry. Once again, Kheper reacted as though he had been struck; it looked like Mona's attack was causing him a great deal of pain. Riolu still could not figure out what kind of move Mona was using, but he guessed that it must have a type advantage against Kheper. Mona prolonged her cry, the unearthly wailing seeming to do significant damage to her opponent.

Kheper braced himself, waiting for Mona's attack to end. When Mona could no longer sustain the attack, her wailing died down, creating an opportunity for Kheper to retaliate. He leaped forward and swung his horn at Mona. She tried to duck, but she was too slow. Kheper's horn struck Mona in the side of her head, knocking her across the ring before she slid to a halt on the dusty ground.

It was obvious that the fight was drawing to a close, as both combatants had already sustained heavy damage. Kheper growled ferociously and sped toward Mona. The Heracross was moving incredibly quickly, too fast for Mona to follow.

Before any of the spectators could even process what had happened, Kheper had already struck Mona, a deep gash sprouting on her chest. Mona's eyes widened in shock as blood began to seep from the wound. She wobbled on her feet and began to fall over.

At that moment, Mona seemed to access a hidden reserve of determination. She steadied herself and glared fiercely into the eyes of her opponent. Riolu saw his own shock at this sudden reversal reflected in Kheper's eyes as Mona prepared her counterattack.

Mona held up one arm and began to rhythmically wiggle her claw from side to side. A faint glow coated the paw as she waved it back and forth. Kheper, realizing that Mona was about to use a move, lunged at her. Unfortunately, his reaction was too delayed.

Before Kheper could make contact with Mona, the air itself shifted around him. It rapidly cut across his chest, piercing his exoskeleton with ease. Kheper toppled over with a breathless gasp, collapsing in front of his foe. Blood oozed from his injury and mixed with the dirt beneath him. He had been defeated.

Nidoking stepped into the ring. "That's enough," he announced. "Kheper has been incapacitated. Mona the Clefairy is the victor of the first battle."

Mona smiled weakly before slumping to the ground in exhaustion. Nidoking picked Mona up with one arm and Kheper with the other, carrying them into one of the tents surrounding the spectators. Riolu hoped that both of them would receive medical attention. His amnesia left him with no frame of reference to determine the severity of their wounds, but both Mona and Kheper seemed to be badly injured.

Riolu looked over to see how Raila was reacting to the outcome of her partner's battle. Concern was written all over her face, but she remained in her place among the spectators ringing the arena.

Nidoking emerged from the tent and crossed the arena to the bowl of names. He picked it up and carried it into the center of the ring.

"Now that that's all taken care of, let's move on to the next fight," he said.

* * *

Several more mock battles went by without incident. The names of two random Pokémon would be called, and they would fight for several minutes until one of them collapsed or was knocked out of the ring. Riolu found his attention wavering as time seemed to drag on. The battles began to blur together in his mind, becoming a confused jumble of colors and noise. The monotony was eventually broken by Nidoking's voice.

"The next battle will be Basil the Treecko versus Icarus the Nuzleaf," he announced.

Riolu felt a strange combination of apprehension and excitement. He felt nervous for his friend; he was worried that Basil might be defeated in his fight. At the same time, Riolu was also excited by the prospect of observing Basil's fighting skills in a more even battle. Riolu always had the impression that Basil had been holding back during their training sessions, so he was curious to see Basil fight at full strength.

Basil stepped forward into the arena, his gait slowing to a crawl. He took his place on one side of the arena. His opponent, the Nuzleaf who filled out his slip last, strode calmly and confidently into the interior of the ring, stopping opposite of Basil. The two combatants stood ready, waiting for Nidoking to begin the match.

"You know the drill," Nidoking said. "Fight until one of you can't keep going. Use whatever attacks you want, but no items. Are you two ready?"

The Nuzleaf smirked and nodded his head. Basil nodded much more hesitantly, nervousness plastered all over his face.

Seeing that the combatants were ready, Nidoking stepped out of the ring and shouted, "Begin!"

Icarus made the first move. Remaining at a distance, the Nuzleaf attacked Basil with several rapidly spinning leaves. Paralyzed by nervousness, Basil was too slow to avoid the Razor Leaf attack. The leaves sliced through Basil's skin like knives, leaving several shallow cuts on his body. Riolu was relieved to see that the attack had not done any significant damage. The pain seemed to free Basil from his anxious stupor. He quickly adopted his battle stance, taking a deep breath to focus.

Icarus grinned. "Finally!" he said. "I couldn't bring myself to really fight you when you were just standing there and cowering. Now that you're ready to actually fight, I can go all out!"

Icarus immediately began his next attack. He gathered energy between his hands, molding it into a glowing sphere. Basil's eyes widened upon seeing the attack, and he began to rush toward Icarus, using his natural speed to quickly close the gap between them.

Despite Basil's best efforts, he could not reach Icarus before the energy inside of the green orb reached its climax. Icarus launched the sphere at Basil. By that point, Basil was already too close to evade the attack. The Treecko's momentum carried him into the attack, guaranteeing a direct hit. The luminescent ball detonated on impact, launching Basil through the air.

Riolu winced as he saw the attack hit Basil. He could only imagine how painful the blow must have been for his partner. Riolu was relieved when he saw Basil pull himself up and face Icarus. Although Basil was clearly in pain, he did not seem to have sustained any serious injuries.

' _Come on, Basil,'_ Riolu thought. _'You can do it. You need to fight back.'_

Basil quickly charged at Icarus again, trying to reach the Nuzleaf before he had time to perform another attack. Icarus prepared to attack with Razor Leaf again. Before the cutting leaves could reach Basil, however, he began to use his own attack. Basil used Quick Attack to increase his speed tremendously, allowing him to evade the leaves and tackle Icarus.

Both Basil and Icarus fell to the ground. Basil quickly got up and used another move. They both began to glow as energy flowed from Icarus to Basil. A few of the cuts left by Icarus's initial Razor Leaf sealed themselves, while Icarus began to show more signs of fatigue.

Icarus responded with a quick jab to Basil's stomach. The punch winded Basil, pushing the air out of his lungs and forcing him to double over. Icarus then grabbed Basil by his shoulders and threw him across the arena.

"Nice try," Icarus said. "It's too bad that I'm a grass type too, otherwise your Absorb might've actually done something."

Riolu was worried about Basil. Although he was trying to conceal it, Basil was clearly feeling the effects of fatigue, and Icarus's attacks were taking their toll on the Treecko. Basil's stance was slumped, and his moves were getting more sluggish as the battle progressed. Riolu did not think that Basil would be able to continue fighting for much longer.

Icarus seemed to have reached the same conclusion. He grinned confidently and began preparing another ball of energy. Basil used Quick Attack again to prevent Icarus from completing the move.

Basil used Pound, swinging at Icarus's head with his tail. Icarus ducked under the attack and responded with a low kick. Basil jumped back and avoided the kick before Icarus could take his legs out from under him.

Basil lunged at Icarus and tried to hit him with Pound several more times. Icarus successfully blocked or evaded each attack, but he could not find an opening to attack Basil. Although Basil had not been able to compete with Icarus at a distance, his superior speed gave him an advantage in close quarters.

Icarus continued to fend off Basil's attacks for several seconds before he stopped moving and stiffened his body. Trying to take advantage of Icarus's immobility, Basil used Pound one more time. He struck the side of Icarus's head, but it seemed to have no impact on the Nuzleaf.

Without warning, Icarus grabbed Basil's tail and threw him over his shoulder. Basil's eyes widened in surprise as he sailed through the air, his momentum carrying him over the line marking the perimeter of the arena and leaving him in an exhausted heap on the ground.

Riolu could not believe what he had just witnessed. Basil seemed to have gained the upper hand, but Icarus found a way to snatch victory away from him within a few seconds. Riolu ran around the ring to help Basil.

"Basil!" he exclaimed as he pulled the defeated Treecko to his feet. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," Basil muttered, but Riolu was not fooled. His voice was heavy with frustration and his body was slumped, as though his defeat was a physical weight resting on his shoulders.

Nidoking stepped into the center of the ring and announced, "Basil has been knocked out of the arena. The victor of this fight is Icarus the Nuzleaf."

Icarus sauntered back to his place in the ring of spectators, his cocky grin returning to his face. Riolu felt his blood begin to boil as he watched Icarus swagger across the arena. The Nuzleaf didn't seem to have any concern for his fallen opponent. Riolu felt resentment clawing at his mind, urging him to avenge Basil's defeat, to make Icarus suffer for hurting his companion. Riolu might have acted on this subconscious desire if his concern for Basil did not outweigh his fury.

Riolu turned back to Basil to make sure that he was okay. To his relief, none of Basil's injuries seemed to be very serious. He had several thin cuts on his body from Icarus's Razor Leaf attack and a few other minor wounds, but the battle had not left him with any injury that required immediate medical attention. It appeared as though the worst damage that Basil had sustained from his battle was a blow to his pride.

Before Riolu could try to console Basil, Nidoking spoke again, "We only have a few more battles to get through before you move on to the next stage of the assessment. Let's see who will be fighting next." He sorted through the handful of remaining slips in the bowl before selecting two and reading them. He began to chuckle quietly to himself. Shifting his gaze from the names, he announced the next combatants, "Raila the Buneary versus Riolu the Riolu."

Riolu's heart froze when he heard his name. Watching Basil lose his fight caused his confidence in his own meager skills to plummet. _'What am I even doing here?'_ he thought, _'I'm not even a real Pokémon. I've only had this body for a couple of weeks. How am I supposed to compete with somebody that has been a Pokémon their entire life?'_

"Go, Riolu," Basil whispered from Riolu's side. "You can do this. I know you can."

Basil's reassurance did little to ease Riolu's anxiety. However, he knew that he had to fight if there was going to be any hope of forming a Royal Squad with Basil. Taking a deep breath in a futile attempt to calm his nerves, Riolu stepped forward and entered the ring. He did everything he could to prevent himself from visibly trembling as he took his place across from his opponent.

Raila practically bounced into the arena from her place in the ring of spectating Pokémon. Her enthusiasm was almost infectious, and Riolu felt himself calming down slightly as she took her place.

"Your name is actually Riolu?" the Buneary cheerfully exclaimed. "I like it! Let's be friends after all of this is over and we're both Royal Squad members. I won't take no for an answer."

Riolu was dumbfounded by her carefree friendliness. _'It sounds like she's sincere,'_ he thought. _'But she can't really be thinking about making friends right now, can she? What if it's some sort of trick to make me let my guard down?'_

Nidoking growled irritably from the sidelines, "Enough of this 'making friends' nonsense. You two are opponents right now. I suggest that you start focusing, little girl." He waited for her to respond, but Raila had fallen silent. "If you're done, then let's start this match. Begin!"

Neither Riolu nor Raila made any immediate move. They each waited for the other to attack first. _'I don't know what to expect,'_ Riolu thought nervously. _'I have no idea what sort of attack I can expect from a Buneary. I just know that she's a normal type. Even though I should have a type advantage, I don't know any fighting-type moves. I can't just rush blindly into this and hope that I'll get lucky. I need to be careful.'_

Before Riolu could devise an effective battle strategy, Raila began to attack. She jumped forward and swung her foot at Riolu's head. Riolu jumped backward, evading the attack. The ground cracked around Raila's foot as she landed where Riolu had been standing moments before.

' _How could her foot indent the ground like that?'_ Riolu wondered, panic clawing at his mind as he realized what could have happened if he had not moved quickly enough. _'What sort of attack was that?'_

Raila did not give Riolu any opportunity to retaliate or rest, charging at him immediately following her impact with the ground. She used Quick Attack, instantly closing the gap between them and pinning Riolu to the ground. She delivered a pair of swift, powerful punches to his head and face before Riolu managed to shove her off of his body.

Riolu stood up and took a step back, giving himself a moment to assess the situation. Raila was faster and much more aggressive than he had initially anticipated. He could not allow his attention to waver for a single moment if he was to have any hope of winning.

Raila did not offer Riolu much time to think, charging at him again and trying to hit him in the head with Pound. Riolu instinctively pulled his arm up to block the attack with the bone on his wrist.

Riolu saw an opportunity to retaliate when he halted Raila's attack. He delivered a hasty punch to Raila's abdomen with his free arm and shoved her away from him. Rather than use this as a chance for a brief respite, Riolu decided to press his advantage.

Riolu used Quick Attack, tackling Raila within a second. He tried to punch Raila, hoping that he would be able to catch her in a vulnerable position. To his surprise, Raila unfurled her ears and used them to block his attack, allowing her to use her arms to retaliate. Riolu was forced to dodge backward to avoid her counterattack.

' _This is bad,'_ he thought. _'Whatever I do, she knows how to counter it. It looks like she has way more experience than I expected. How am I going to have any chance of beating her?'_

Fatigue and pain were beginning to weigh heavily on Riolu's body as Raila rained blows on him. He desperately tried to block or dodge each attack, but he could not defend himself from all of them. The fight was quickly spiraling out of Riolu's control, and he was losing what little hope he had of succeeding.

Raila used Quick Attack, knocking Riolu backward before he had any chance to react. He barely managed to remain on his feet. Looking back for a moment, Riolu realized that he had almost been pushed out of the circle. He avoided looking at the spectating Pokémon standing outside the ring, afraid to see the judgment in their eyes.

' _Wait a minute,'_ he realized. _'That's how I can win. I need to find a way to force Raila out of the ring. But how can I do that?'_ He remembered the events that led to Basil's defeat. Icarus used a defensive move, allowed himself to get hit by Basil, and then used Basil's momentum to throw him across the boundary. _'That's it!'_ he thought, _'I can use Endure and then knock her out of the ring.'_

Before Riolu could finish another thought, Raila used Quick Attack again. Riolu hastily tried to use Endure to absorb the blow. He felt the energy surging within his body and released it from its reservoir. Riolu's body was shrouded in a faint glow as his power came to his defense. However, it felt unusual, as though it were behaving differently from how it had when Riolu used Endure during his training with Basil.

Raila hit Riolu with her attack, but his energy pulsed outward, striking Raila. Raila's momentum was reversed as Riolu's move used her own power against her. She was knocked off of her feet, falling to the ground several feet away from him.

' _I just learned a new move!'_ Riolu realized. _'I can't believe it. It looks like it used the power from Raila's attack to strengthen itself.'_

Riolu was still hurt by Raila's attack, but it was obvious that she had received much more damage than him. She staggered to her feet, clutching her arm in pain. One of her ears hung limply from her head, unable to curl up and return to its usual position. Riolu tried to take advantage of her vulnerability by using Quick Attack, but his legs buckled underneath him and he collapsed to the ground.

Raila limped toward Riolu as he struggled to regain his footing. As his energy abandoned him, he felt the full extent of his pain and fatigue. Riolu's exhaustion restricted his movements like heavy chains pulling him to the ground. When Raila reached him, he futilely tried to prepare for her to attack him. To his surprise, Raila held out her paw to him with a friendly grin on her face.

"That was fun!" she happily exclaimed. "You really got me at the end there. I just know that we're going to be great friends. No hard feelings about this fight, okay?"

Riolu reached out and clasped Raila's paw with his own. She pulled him to his feet. For some reason, Riolu found himself instinctively trusting Raila. Sincerity seemed to seep from her entire being. Consequently, he was unprepared when her uninjured ear unfurled itself and struck him in the head. Riolu was barely able to register what had happened before he lost consciousness.

* * *

Riolu felt the ground beneath his prone body. It was unnaturally smooth, devoid of any bump or crevice. Riolu could not remember where he had been before losing consciousness, but he was sure that the ground did not have this unusual texture.

He struggled to force his eyelids open, but they were incredibly heavy, as though some force was pulling down on them. Riolu persisted, doubling his efforts to pry his eyes open. The resistant force increased in strength to match his attempts.

Riolu had no way of knowing how long he toiled against the stubborn power seeking to withhold his sight from him. Time seemed to have no meaning as he fought to regain his vision, seconds becoming indistinguishable from minutes and hours.

The harder Riolu worked to open his eyes, the more daunting the simple task became. He tried to pull his arm up to his face to combat the force weighing heavily upon his eyelids, but found that it was just as immobile as they were. His panic rising, Riolu attempted to move the rest of his body. As he feared, the force that held his eyelids shut was immobilizing his entire body.

Riolu wanted to cry out for help, but his vocal cords would not produce a sound. Restrained and silenced, Riolu was helpless. Despite the apparent hopelessness of his circumstances, he continued his efforts to force his eyes open.

Just as Riolu was about to give up, he began to make some progress. He felt a marginal decrease in the force that opposed him, allowing him to gradually open his eyes. With the first incremental gain, white light poured into Riolu's eye, leaving him just as blind as he had been with his eyes closed. Riolu continued to try to overcome the powerful resistance acting on his eyelids. As his eye opened, Riolu's vision returned to him. What he saw was largely unsatisfying.

The space around him was completely empty, a white wasteland devoid of any life. It appeared as though some deity had taken all of the matter from the world and carried it away, leaving behind a blank husk. The landscape's monotony was matched only by its familiarity.

' _I remember this place,'_ Riolu realized, _'I've been here before in a dream. How did I get here? Am I asleep?'_ Memories came flooding back to him. He saw the colossal doors of the Ivory Palace looming over him. He saw Icarus throwing Basil out of the ring, and the sense of defeat exuding from his usually optimistic friend. Finally, he saw Raila holding out her hand in a sign of friendship before delivering a quick blow to his head. _'I must have lost consciousness when she hit me,'_ he thought. _'So what now? Will I wake up soon? Or am I going to stay trapped in this wasteland?'_

Riolu's thoughts were cut short when he noticed a faint shape in the distance. Riolu could not discern any of the figure's characteristics, so he began to approach it. He felt an inexplicable connection to the strange figure, as though it was calling to him. He took a few steps toward the enigma when he felt a familiar pressure returning. The force was coming back, trying to drag him down again.

' _Not again!'_ he screamed in his mind as the force bound his muzzle shut. He felt it clamp down on his legs, causing him to trip and fall to the pale ground. His body was pressed down until he was lying sprawled on the ground. His eyelids were being forced shut once more despite his attempts to resist.

He could not overcome the power working against him this time. He tried to keep his eyes from closing, doing everything he could to keep the shape in the distance within his line of sight. The vague figure was the last thing he saw before his vision was completely cut off.

* * *

Riolu opened his eyes. He was lying on his side on a wooden table covered with a white cloth. There was a wall of brown canvas inches from his face. The faint smell of blood hung in the air, invading Riolu's nostrils. He tried to roll over to his other side, but pain erupted throughout his entire body. It felt like a stampede had trampled Riolu into the dust. Riolu heard hushed voices speaking rapidly behind him. He placed his paw on the table and tried to roll himself over again. His muscles screamed in protest, but he forced himself to continue through the pain until he flopped to his other side.

Now that he could see the entirety of the space, it was obvious that Riolu was in a large tent. Tables covered with cloth filled the space in organized rows. Most of them were unoccupied, but a few held injured participants from the first trial. Riolu noticed Mona lying with her back facing him on the other side of the tent.

The nearest Pokémon was the Heracross named Kheper, whose chest was wrapped tightly in a bandage. He was sitting up, his legs hanging limply over the edge of the table. Two Pokémon stood next to the bug type, conversing with him in low tones.

The first was a red lizard with a cream-colored underbelly. It had sharp white claws at the ends of each of its limbs and a horn protruding from the back of its head. The most unusual characteristic of this Pokémon was the flame burning on the tip of its tail. Riolu made a mental note to ask Basil about it later.

Riolu managed to identify the other Pokémon as a Braixen. It was a bipedal fox with yellow fur covering its ears, forehead, abdomen, and the majority of its tail. The fur on its legs was black. Long orange fur sprouted from its large ears. The white fur around its neck formed a small mane. Riolu could see the tip of a stick protruding from its fluffy, orange-tipped tail.

Riolu continued to look around the tent. After several seconds, he located the source of the voices he had initially heard. Basil was standing nearby, whispering to a taller Pokémon. Its body was pink and cream, with floppy ears on either side of its head. Thin extensions descended from its ears and curled away from its head. It also had a large white tuft of fur as a tail. A belt was wrapped around the Pokémon's waist with various pouches and tools hanging from it.

"When is he going to wake up?" Basil whispered.

"I'm not sure," the Pokémon responded gently. "I would have expected him to wake up quickly. He actually wasn't that badly hurt; that Buneary must have been holding back. At full strength, their ears have been known to break stone."

Riolu tried to call out to them, but a sudden sharp pain in his chest prevented him from forming any coherent words. The most noise he could make was a strangled gurgle. The pink Pokémon's ears twitched and she turned to look at Riolu.

"Oh, good! You're awake," she said as she rushed over to Riolu with Basil trailing behind her. "Don't try to get up just yet, sweetie. You need to give your body some time to finish recovering." She reached into one of the pouches on her belt and pulled out an Oran Berry. Handing the berry to Riolu, she told him to eat it. He wolfed it down, allowing the berry's soothing juices to trickle down his throat. He could feel his pain quickly numbing until it was no more than a dull throbbing.

"Okay, you should be fit enough to go now," the pink Pokémon said. "I'm sure that the first part of the assessment will be over soon, so you should get ready to move on to the second trial."

"Thank you, Miss Audino," Basil responded. He turned to Riolu. "How are you feeling? Are you ready to keep going?"

Riolu nodded enthusiastically. The Oran Berry had eased his pain and restored his stamina. "Let's do it!" he replied. "We may have lost our fights, but that just means that we need to do well in the other trials. Let's show them how hard we've worked for this. They'll be begging us to join by the end."

Any trace of concern in Basil's face vanished instantly. He grinned confidently and grabbed Riolu by the arm, pulling him toward the tent's exit. "Come on! Let's show them what we're made of!" he said.

They stepped out of the tent, ready to face whatever obstacles the next trial had in store for them.


	6. Chapter 6: The Trials, Part Two

Basil and Riolu emerged from the medical tent to see that a fight was still underway. Riolu recognized one of the combatants as a Skiploom. The grass type was battling against an unfamiliar squirrel Pokémon.

The fur on the front of the squirrel Pokémon's body was white. There was black fur on its back and around its face, giving it the appearance of wearing a black hood, with two small spikes of black fur extending down toward its face. It had black eyes and small yellow circles on its cheeks. Its ears were covered with black fur, but their interiors were yellow and white. Its black tail had a somewhat jagged appearance.

Both of the combatants' bodies were covered in cuts and minor injuries. Riolu guessed that the battle had already been going on for a while. Judging from the number of injuries that Riolu could see, the Skiploom seemed to be the more heavily damaged of the two of them.

"Basil," Riolu whispered, turning to his companion. "What is that squirrel Pokémon?"

"That's an Emolga," Basil answered. "They have two types: electric and flying."

' _Flying?'_ Riolu thought. _'It's a squirrel Pokémon. How could it be a flying type?'_

The Skiploom conjured a gust of sparkling wind to attack the Emolga. To Riolu's surprise, the Emolga raised its arms and caught the wind in wing-like flaps that connected its arms and legs. Instead of forcefully striking the Emolga, the Skiploom's attack simply caused it to rise into the air, where it was able to glide using its flaps. The Emolga used its maneuverability in the air to gain the upper hand over its opponent, darting around the slower grass type.

Now behind Skiploom, the Emolga attacked it with a small bolt of electricity. The Skiploom was stunned by the electric-type attack, providing the Emolga with an opportunity to rapidly glide to the ground and strike with a Quick Attack. The Emolga clung to its opponent as they tumbled across the ground together, nuzzling its cheeks to the grass type's face.

' _What is Emolga doing?'_ Riolu wondered. _'Is it hugging the Skiploom?'_ He realized what was happening when he saw electricity sparking at the point of contact between the two Pokémon. The Emolga was using its cheeks to attack the Skiploom with electricity.

The Emolga released its victim after several seconds of contact. The Skiploom twitched on the ground, paralyzed by the attack. The Emolga grinned triumphantly and grabbed its opponent, hurling the lighter Pokémon through the air. The Skiploom floated briefly before landing outside the ring. Nidoking stepped forward from the crowd of spectators and turned to address everyone.

"It looks like Lily the Emolga is the winner," Nidoking said. "And with that, we're done with the first trial. Fortunately, that means that I'm going to be rid of the lot of you. Just stay around here while you wait for the second trial to begin. Whatever you do, don't wander off."

Nidoking turned and walked away from the ring of Pokémon, crossing the grassy courtyard and exiting through the door in the wall through which Riolu and Basil first arrived. The applicants immediately dispersed, gathering into small groups and conversing in low tones, most likely trying to guess what sort of challenge they would face in the second trial.

"Hey! Riolu!" a voice called from behind Riolu. He turned around to see Raila, the Buneary that he fought. She was standing with the Emolga that had just finished her fight. Raila waved at Riolu and beckoned for him and Basil to join them.

Basil and Riolu walked over to Raila and the Emolga. Riolu was somewhat cautious, not entirely sure whether or not he could trust Raila after the deception she used to beat him in their fight. However, her friendly grin made it difficult for Riolu to hold a grudge against her. She looked so carefree and kind that he could hardly believe that she had been such a dangerous fighter just a short while ago.

"How are you feeling, Riolu? I hope I didn't hit you too hard. I can get a little carried away when I'm fighting," she said. She turned to Basil and asked, "Your name is Basil, right? Do you want to be friends?"

Basil froze for a moment as he tried to figure out how to respond to Raila's sudden request. "Uh… Sure," he eventually said.

"Great!" Raila giggled excitedly. She seemed to ooze enthusiasm as she spoke.

"Looks like we've got two more friends," the Emolga said. "My name is Lily. I'm the most fun one around here."

"You liar!" Raila exclaimed, lightly punching Lily on the shoulder. "I'm just as much fun to be around as you!"

"Oh yeah?" Lily replied. "Well, I'm a better fighter!" Lily tackled Raila and the two Pokémon fell to the ground, laughing as they lay on top of one another. Riolu could only watch in bewilderment as the odd pair wrestled on the ground, rolling over one another in a mock contest for dominance.

"Knock it off! I'm barely gone for any time at all and you're already acting like children," a voice grumbled from behind Riolu. Before he had time to turn around, a familiar Clefairy walked over to Raila and Lily. She grabbed both of them and pulled them apart from one another, giving them an irritated glare.

"Mona! You're back!" Raila happily shouted.

"Would you keep your voice down?" Mona muttered. "You're going to destroy every conversation around us. I swear, I can't leave you two alone for a single minute."

Riolu averted his gaze and looked at Basil. Riolu was somewhat relieved to see that Basil looked just as confused and awkward as he was feeling. Neither of them had any idea what they should be doing as they watched the bizarre scene unfold in front of them.

Mona turned and glared at them. "What are you two gawking at?" she demanded.

"Be nice, Mona," Raila said. "They weren't even doing anything. They're our friends: Basil and Riolu."

Mona rolled her eyes. "Whatever," she replied. "We should be focusing on the assessment anyway. We can all chat and become friends later."

"All about business, as usual," Lily muttered. "Why do we even need focus on it now? We don't even know what the second trial is going to be."

Raila grinned mischievously. Riolu couldn't imagine what was going on inside her head, but apparently it was a look that Mona recognized.

"You're joking," the Clefairy said. "You didn't."

"I might've asked my big sis for some advice to pass the test, and she _might've_ given me a hint about one of the trials in the assessment," Raila answered, slightly averting her gaze.

"You know about the second trial?" Basil asked, suddenly engaged in the discussion.

"My sister just told me that it's all about cooperating with other entrants," Raila said. "It makes sense, I guess, since teamwork is so important when you're on a Royal Squad."

"How would your sister know?" Riolu asked.

"Because she's on a Gold Rank squad," Raila replied.

Basil gasped. "A Gold Rank squad? Which one?"

Raila averted her gaze before hesitantly answering, "Team Scarcity."

Basil's eyes widened in shock. "Your sister is the Lopunny on Team Scarcity?!" he exclaimed. "But they're a really famous squad! I never would've guessed that you're related to her."

Raila's ears slid down to cover her face. "Yeah, she's my big sister," she mumbled. "It's not really a big deal. I'm not special or anything. Anyways, she told me that the second trial is meant to test our ability to work together. She wouldn't tell me anything else, but it's better than not knowing anything ahead of time."

Riolu couldn't decide whether to be reassured or dismayed by the knowledge that the second trial was going to be about teamwork. Although that meant that he wouldn't have to face the challenge alone, he did not know whether he would be able to work effectively alongside another Pokémon in a battle. He had only ever practiced fighting one-on-one with Basil.

Riolu's concerns were pushed to the back of his mind when he heard the sound of approaching footsteps. He turned around to see another familiar face. It was the blue Pokémon that had been accompanying Nidoking in the Kecleon Store. Riolu had since learned that her species was called Aurorus. She towered over most of the applicants, looking down at them with no emotion in her face.

All of the Pokémon gathered in a semicircle in front of Aurorus, awaiting her instructions. Her gaze passed over all of them within a few seconds, pausing to stare at Riolu for a brief moment before moving on. Fortunately, it did not seem to matter to her that Riolu was one of the applicants.

' _Maybe Nidoking already told her,'_ Riolu thought. _'Or maybe she just doesn't care. I don't think I even want to know what's going on inside her head.'_

Aurorus began to speak, "Hello, potential members. You may call me Aurorus. I will be overseeing the second trial of this assessment. The purpose of this trial is to assess your ability to operate as a unit, rather than as individuals. Your task is incredibly simple in nature. You will divide yourselves into teams consisting of no more than five members. Each team must work together to touch me. You do not have to best me in combat; you only have to make physical contact with my body."

"What?" Riolu whispered. "That's it? We just have to touch her? It can't be that easy."

"Well, she _is_ a member of a Silver Rank Royal Squad," Basil whispered back. "She probably has plenty of tricks to throw at us."

"Are you two nearly finished with your discussion?" Aurorus asked, giving the two of them a disdainful glare. "Although I am sure that your conversation is _exceedingly_ significant, I am afraid that I must inconvenience you with details regarding the second trial."

Aurorus stared at Basil and Riolu for a few seconds, waiting to make sure that they would not interrupt her, then continued, "As I was saying, you must separate yourselves into groups of five or fewer Pokémon. Once you have divided yourselves, each team will have two minutes to fulfill their task. It would be in your best interest to ensure that you are able to work effectively with the Pokémon in your group. Choose wisely."

As soon as Aurorus finished speaking, the Pokémon around her began scrambling to find partners. The Pokémon that had come together to form Royal Squads separated themselves from the rest and began choosing additional team members to reach the maximum of five.

Riolu began to panic as the chaos quickly built. He jumped when he felt a paw grab his shoulder from behind and pull him backwards. He looked over his shoulder and saw Raila tugging at him and Basil.

"Come on, you two!" she said. "We should start talking about how to beat the trial together."

It took Riolu a moment to realize that she was inviting them to join her team for the second trial. "Uh… Okay," he stammered. "Thanks."

"You don't need to thank me, silly!" Raila replied. "I wouldn't leave my friends to face this test all on their own."

The three of them joined Lily and Mona, who had distanced themselves from the initial pandemonium. Lily smiled welcomingly when she saw Riolu and Basil accompanying Raila. Mona was not as openly accepting as Lily, but she did not force them away, which Riolu decided was probably as friendly as she was going to get.

"Really, Raila?" Mona said as they approached. "You couldn't have chosen anybody else? I might not have been able to watch, but I know that they both lost their fights. In fact, Riolu lost to you."

"Don't be like that, Mona," Raila answered. "They're our friends. Not everything is about having the strongest fighters. Compatibility is important, too. What if it turns out that all of the super good fighters here are total jerks? Besides, if you only want teammates that will give us an advantage, these two will work. They both have type advantages against Aurorus, don't they?"

"That would be good, except for the fact that we're not fighting her," Mona responded irritably. "The goal is to touch Aurorus. That means that the Pokémon that we want on our team are Pokémon that are fast and evasive. Just the fact that they have a type advantage won't be of much use when they won't be attacking. In fact, Basil is at a disadvantage against ice-type attacks, which is exactly what we can expect from an Aurorus."

"Stop being such a downer, Mona," Raila whined. "You need to loosen up a little."

"I'll loosen up when we've started a Royal Squad," Mona said, rolling her eyes. "Whatever. It's too late to get different teammates anyway. Everybody has been taken already."

She was right. All of the applicants had been organized into teams. They were scattered throughout the space inside the ring of tents in small groups. Each group kept to itself, avoiding the other groups as they strategized.

Riolu recognized Kheper, the Heracross that fought Mona, standing nearby with the two Pokémon from inside the medical tent. The Skiploom that Lily defeated in the first trial and a Roselia also joined the three of them. Although Kheper still had a bandage tied across his chest, he seemed to have recovered from his fight against Mona.

Riolu remembered that he had meant to ask Basil about Kheper's reptilian companion. He thought that he had seen a picture of the red lizard's species while he was studying, but he could not remember its name. His gaze kept returning to the strange flame burning brightly on the lizard Pokémon's tail.

"Basil, what is that Pokémon called?" Riolu asked, gesturing to the lizard.

Basil glanced over at the Pokémon. "That's a Charmeleon. They're fire types."

"Hold on, you don't know what a Charmeleon is?" Lily interrupted. "I know they aren't that common around here, but seriously? How do you not know about them?"

Riolu froze. He knew that he had to offer some sort of explanation to the three Pokémon, but he didn't think that telling them that he was a human with no memory was a good idea. They might begin to think that he was insane. As they kept staring at him with confused looks, Riolu frantically tried to come up with some excuse.

"Riolu isn't from around here," Basil quickly interjected. "He's from a small village near the border with Colos. He hasn't seen a lot of different kinds of Pokémon because he wasn't really allowed to leave his village until recently."

Riolu felt guilty about lying, but he knew that telling the truth would just create more problems than it would solve. He promised himself that he would make up for it somehow.

Raila and Lily both seemed to accept Basil's explanation. Mona, on the other hand, appeared skeptical. She was looking at Riolu suspiciously, making him increasingly nervous.

Before Mona had a chance to voice her doubts, Aurorus began to speak, "I see that you have all organized yourselves into your groups. In that case, it is time for us to begin. Are there any volunteers to be the first group?"

She waited for somebody to speak, but the groups were all silent. Aurorus was about to choose the first group herself when Raila waved her arms and shouted, "We'll go first, Miss Aurorus!"

Riolu started to panic when he heard Raila volunteer for their entire group. He had been hoping to be able to watch other groups go first, so that he would be able to see what to expect. Unfortunately, it seemed that he would not have that opportunity.

Aurorus briefly examined the group before she said, "Very well. If you wish to be the first group, I will not deny you the opportunity. Take your places on the edge of the combat ring. All of the other groups must stand outside the ring of tents while they complete the trial."

Aurorus walked into the center of the white ring on the ground while the other groups vacated the circle of dirt in the middle of the courtyard. Riolu stood on the white line with the rest of his group, barely keeping his legs from trembling.

"Remember, to succeed in this trial, one of the members of your group must make contact with me," Aurorus reminded them. "Begin."

Before anyone could make a move, Aurorus's body glowed. Dark storm clouds formed overhead, and the ring was filled with a strong, swirling wind. Riolu's entire body was pelted with snow and ice, and he had to dig his feet into the ground to prevent himself from being knocked over by the powerful gust. The bitter cold clawed at Riolu's body, stabbing him like needles.

Raila shielded her face from the biting wind with her ear and shouted, "We need to move up! We only have two minutes! Mona, any ideas?"

Mona yelled back, "We should split up to divide her attention! We'll all pass as long as one of us manages to touch her while the others are providing a distraction!"

Riolu was worried about taking that approach. If they split up, then the wind would most likely drown out their voices, making communication almost impossible. However, he did not have time to voice his concerns before his teammates all began to separate from one another, approaching Aurorus from different angles.

Aurorus watched the smaller Pokémon fight against the powerful hailstorm with an expression of mild amusement. She waited a few seconds, allowing them to make slight progress, before the crystals on the sides of her body began to faintly glow.

Riolu was struggling to reach Aurorus. The wind seemed to be actively working against him, pushing him away from Aurorus. Looking ahead at her, Riolu was surprised to see the glow of the crystals lining her body. Without warning, a wall of ice sprouted from the ground in front of him, cutting off his intended route.

Looking around, Riolu saw that his companions were not faring much better. None of them had made much progress, still very close to the outside of the ring. Raila and Mona were both trying to circle around Aurorus to the left, while Basil was trying to advance to the right. Ice walls were growing in their paths to hinder their progress.

Lily was clinging to the ground close to their starting point. She seemed to be waiting for something, perhaps hoping that there would be a favorable wind to launch her into the air. As Riolu watched, she jumped and opened the flaps under her arms, allowing the wind to carry her. She began to quickly navigate through the air toward Aurorus.

Before Lily could reach her, Aurorus struck her with a blue beam of energy from her mouth. The attack hit Lily in the chest, knocking her out of the air. Ice began to form from the point of impact. The Emolga slammed into the ground hard. To Riolu's relief, Lily managed to stand up again, although her movements were shaky.

Riolu realized that their group was not making progress quickly enough to succeed. He did not know how much time had already elapsed, but he knew that they had to reach Aurorus soon.

Riolu took a moment to examine their situation. None of them had managed to get very far because of the raging hailstorm and ice walls. Aurorus was blocking them at every turn, constantly cutting them off. The noise of the wind roaring in their ears was deafening, preventing him from calling out to his teammates. As he thought about what to do, Riolu came up with a way to get around that complication.

Bracing himself, Riolu dashed toward Raila and Mona using Quick Attack. The hail cut through his skin as he ran through the ice storm, opening several thin gashes on his arms and legs, but he managed to reach Raila and Mona before Aurorus had time to hinder him with another wall of ice.

"We need to change tactics!" Riolu shouted over the howling wind. "I have an idea! I need you two to distract Aurorus while Basil and I try to charge her from the other direction!"

"Leave it to us!" Mona responded. "I know what to do!"

Riolu nodded and then prepared to use Quick Attack again, this time to reach Basil as he took cover behind one of Aurorus's ice walls. Using his attack, Riolu was able to get to Basil without Aurorus blocking his path, although he took more damage from the hail.

"Basil!" Riolu yelled. "Raila and Mona are going to distract Aurorus! While she's focused on them, we're going to go for her! Use Quick Attack to run through the hail!"

Basil nodded to show his understanding. The two of them prepared themselves to charge at Aurorus as soon as Raila and Mona created an opportunity for them to strike.

Riolu saw Raila use Quick Attack to run through the hailstorm toward Aurorus. Aurorus responded by attacking Raila with a rainbow-colored beam, which exploded at Raila's feet. The Buneary was launched through the air, colliding with an ice wall. Mona emerged from behind the wall and began to beckon toward Aurorus with her finger. Riolu was confused by this behavior until he noticed Raila frantically gesturing toward him and Basil. That was when he realized that Mona was using some sort of move to distract Aurorus.

"Now's our chance!" he called back to Basil. "Let's go!"

Both Riolu and Basil used Quick Attack, charging at Aurorus. The wind whipped against them, slowing them down but failing to stop them. To Riolu's surprise, Aurorus was not attacking them. A few ice walls grew in front of him and Basil, but they were able to navigate around them. For whatever reason, Aurorus's attacks were entirely focused on Mona.

Riolu heard a cry of pain from behind him and guessed that Mona had been hit by one of Aurorus's attacks. The effects of whatever move Mona had been using faded, and Aurorus turned her full attention to Riolu and Basil.

Aurorus began to charge energy in her mouth. Riolu realized that he and Basil could do nothing to evade the attack. Just before Aurorus unleashed her attack against them, a small bolt of electricity arced through the air and struck her. Looking over his shoulder, Riolu saw Lily attacking Aurorus with Thunder Shock.

Lily's attack was just enough to throw off Aurorus's aim. Rather than hitting them directly, her attack hit the ground next to them, exploding on impact. Basil was propelled forward through the air by the force of the explosion, landing a few yards away from Aurorus. Riolu fell to his knees as the shockwave halted his momentum.

Looking up, Riolu saw what he had to do. "Sorry, Basil," he muttered under his breath as he used one more Quick Attack.

Riolu dashed forward and slammed his body into Basil's, launching the Treecko forward. Riolu watched as his friend sailed through the air and crashed into Aurorus with almost enough force to unbalance her. Her eyes widened in shock at the suddenness of the maneuver.

The crystals on Aurorus's body stopped glowing and the hailstorm began to dissipate. The frozen walls cracked and shattered, their glittering fragments quickly melting as the sun's heat returned.

Riolu allowed his body to sink to the ground. He was not used to using so many moves within such a short period of time, so he felt completely drained. His teammates seemed to be in similar states, although they were all more injured than Riolu.

Aurorus quickly regained her composure and addressed the team in her usual, apathetic voice, "Congratulations. You have succeeding in your task. Despite the fact that your final tactic was rather unorthodox, I am obligated to inform you that you have passed the second trial."

Riolu felt a rush of ecstasy at their success. He forced himself to stand up and walked over to where Basil lay prone on the ground. Pulling the injured Treecko up, Riolu supported him as they exited the combat ring with Raila, Mona, and Lily. They were met by the Audino medic, who ushered them into her tent. She quickly checked each of them and tended to their injuries. She used a move, healing each of them with a pulse of pink energy. Riolu felt refreshed as the energy flowed through his body, easing his pain and sealing the cuts on his arms and legs. Audino ordered the five Pokémon to rest inside the tent for a while before she left to observe the next group.

Riolu could hear the sounds of a battle outside. Evidently, the next group was beginning its trial. Riolu wondered which group it was, and whether they would manage to reach Aurorus within the time limit.

Riolu turned to Basil, "I'm sorry for attacking you at the end there. I didn't know what else to do."

Basil grinned and replied, "Don't worry about it. I understand. You just did what you had to at the time. After all, we probably would've failed if you hadn't thought of that."

"Yeah!" Raila added. "It's all thanks to you that we just passed the second trial."

"That's lovely," Mona said. "But now that there's time, I'd like to know why Basil and Riolu lied about where Riolu's from. Are you two planning on telling us the truth now, or are you going to keep trying to hide whatever his secret is?"

Basil visibly flinched. Riolu also began to panic. He suspected that Mona had not believed their story, but he didn't expect her to confront them so soon.

"Mona!" Raila gasped. "They're our friends. How could you say something like that?"

Riolu felt guilt piercing his heart like a knife. Raila had trusted him from the moment they met, and he had already betrayed her trust. He knew that Mona would not be satisfied until he told the truth, even if it might sound insane. Seeing no alternatives, Riolu sighed.

"Okay," he said. "I'll tell you. We didn't tell you before because it's pretty hard to believe, but I swear that this is the truth. I woke up in the forest with no memory. I don't know who I am or where I came from. All I know is that I'm actually a human, but I somehow turned into a Riolu. Basil found me and brought me back to Verdura, and I've been living with him. Now we're trying to form a Royal Squad because Basil has always wanted to be in one and I think that it might help me figure out what happened to me."

Raila, Mona, and Lily stared at him blankly. Riolu was unnerved by the lack of a reaction from them. He had no idea what was going through their heads.

' _Do they hate me for lying to them?'_ he wondered despairingly. _'Do they think that I'm crazy? Or that I'm just lying to them again? What are they thinking?!'_

Just when Riolu thought that the tension might cause him to lose his mind, Raila spoke. "I get it. You were afraid that we would think you were loony if you had just told us that you're a human out of the blue. You don't need to worry, Riolu. I believe you, and I'm sure Mona and Lily do too. Right guys?"

Lily nodded. "Of course. You should've just told us all of that from the beginning."

Mona continued to examine Riolu before she answered, "As ludicrous as it sounds, I think you're actually telling the truth this time. As far as I know, humans are just fairy tales. That being said, you at least seem to really believe that you are one. I don't see any reason to think that you're crazy, so I guess I believe you too. For now, at least."

"Thanks, you guys," Riolu said, his worry fading away. "I'm really sorry that Basil and I lied to you."

"I'm sorry too," Basil added.

Raila smiled cheerfully. "Don't worry about it, we forgive you. That's what friends do," she replied. Mona and Lily nodded in agreement.

"Now that that's all sorted out, let's go see what's going on outside," Lily suggested.

The five friends stood up and walked to the entrance of the medical tent. Stepping outside, they saw a group of four Pokémon struggling against Aurorus's hailstorm and ice walls. Riolu was able to identify the Pokémon as a Venonat, a Kricketot, a Sunflora, and a Furret.

The four Pokémon seemed to be having trouble, as Aurorus was not giving them any opportunities to rest and strategize. She was creating walls of ice to completely cut them off from one another and defending herself much more aggressively. The group of Pokémon could not advance at all without being bombarded with powerful attacks. It seemed that Aurorus was not planning on making the trial as easy for this group as it had been for the first.

As Riolu watched, Aurorus hit the Venonat with a beam of blue energy. The small poison type was frozen solid by the attack. Aurorus used her abilities to prevent the Venonat's teammates from reaching it, leaving it completely helpless.

The team tried to persevere against the barrage of attacks and raging hailstorm, but they could not reach Aurorus in time. Eventually, the hailstorm abated, and Aurorus's ice walls shattered.

Aurorus looked down at the four defeated Pokémon, her gaze full of scorn. "Your time is up. You have failed."

The four downtrodden Pokémon shuffled out of the combat ring. Aurorus silently watched them, showing no remorse whatsoever. She nodded to Kheper's group, indicating that they would be next.

Kheper took his place on the white line, flanked by the Braixen and Charmeleon that Riolu had seen in the medical tent with him. The Skiploom and Roselia trailed slightly behind, looking at Aurorus with trepidation. Kheper and his two companions seemed much more confident in their ability to pass the second trial than those two. Riolu guessed that this might have been due to the type advantage that Braixen and Charmeleon had against Aurorus.

Once all five Pokémon had taken their places, Aurorus spoke. "The rules have not changed. You will have two minutes to reach me. Begin."

Aurorus's body immediately glowed, conjuring another powerful hailstorm. It looked like she would be using the same strategy to repel this group as the previous two. She also began to form walls around herself and in front of the group to cut them off.

The Braixen turned to Kheper and shouted, "Do it!"

Kheper's horn began to glow white. Turning his head up, he shot a beam of energy straight into the sky. The clouds overhead parted, and the hailstorm conjured by Aurorus dissipated. The sun began to shine brighter, its intense heat washing over all of the spectators.

Kheper turned to his fire-type teammates. "Your turn," he said.

The Braixen and Charmeleon both nodded and started to breathe streams of fire into the walls created by Aurorus. The flames quickly melted the walls, opening a path for the group to rush through toward Aurorus. She tried to create more walls and use attacks to impede the group's charge, but the two fire types were able to burn their way through with ease.

They soon burned through the last of Aurorus's ice walls with Flamethrower. Kheper jumped forward and placed his claw on her chest, ending the trial. Riolu could barely believe what he had just seen. They had beaten the trial in a matter of seconds.

Aurorus seemed just as shocked as Riolu. She just stood there, speechless, staring at Kheper and the fire types. She quickly worked to regain her composure and tersely said, "Well done. You all pass."

As the victorious Pokémon left the ring, Aurorus turned to the applicants watching in stunned silence nearby. She briefly looked them all over before nodding to one of the groups.

"The next group shall step forward for their trial."

* * *

The last group's trial ended when one of the members, an Aipom, climbed one of Aurorus's ice walls and landed on top of her head.

"That will do," Aurorus said as she shook the Aipom off. "That concludes the second trial. You will all continue to the third and final trial of the assessment. After you have completed that, your performances in all three trials will be considered to determine whether you will be accepted as Royal Squad members. I would recommend that you all prepare yourselves for what is ahead, but frankly there is not much you can do to prepare for the third trial."

Aurorus turned and left the same way that Nidoking had before, leaving the applicants to mull over her cryptic message. Many began to whisper nervously to each other as they waited.

They did not have to wait very long before a soft voice called out, "Could everyone look this way please?"

Riolu turned to see that the speaker was the third Pokémon that he encountered in the Kecleon Store, which he now knew was a Leafeon. She was sitting calmly next to the entrance of a tent with a purple stripe on its side. Riolu realized that he never noticed her approaching. It was as though she had simply appeared out of thin air.

"I don't really like it when people call me 'Leafeon,' so you can all just call me Sola," she said. She seemed shy, generally avoiding eye contact with each of the applicants. "The third trial is about to begin. You will each go into this tent and be evaluated. Only one Pokémon is allowed inside at any time. You can go in once the Pokémon before you comes out. Please get into a single-file line."

All of the Pokémon quickly got into a line. Riolu found himself standing in between Raila and Basil. Sola checked that all of the applicants were in the line before ushering the Roselia standing in front into the tent.

Riolu strained to hear what was going on inside the tent over the hushed whispers of the Pokémon in the line. No matter how hard he tried, he could not hear anything. There was no sound coming from within the tent. The eerie silence filled Riolu with a sense of foreboding, making him increasingly nervous as he waited.

After about a minute, the tent's flap stirred. The Roselia emerged from the tent, looking somewhat shaken. Her gaze was distant, as though she was completely lost in her own thoughts. _'What happened in there?'_ Riolu wondered uneasily.

Sola intercepted the Roselia and spoke to her quietly. The Roselia nodded softly and meandered to the outside of the ring of tents. Her steps were unsteady, and she looked like a light breeze could knock her over.

Sola sat back down next to the tent and gestured to the next Pokémon in line. "Your turn," she said. "Good luck."

* * *

Riolu watched as Raila emerged from the tent. She moved with most of her usual energy, but she did not look quite as cheerful as she had when she entered the tent. She quickly walked to the growing crowd around the ring of tents.

"Okay, your turn," Sola said to Riolu. He began walking toward the entrance of the tent. As he entered, he heard Sola whisper to him, "Good luck."

Riolu took a deep breath to calm himself and stepped inside of the tent. It was dark inside, but his eyes quickly adjusted to the gloom. A thick brown rug covered the ground. There were strange orange and red symbols woven into it. Most of the tent was empty, except for a small wooden table with a quill, an inkwell, and a sheet of paper covered in footprint runes. There was a Pokémon sitting cross-legged on the floor in front of Riolu.

The Pokémon was a yellow humanoid with long whiskers growing from its long, thin snout. Long spikes, presumably the Pokémon's ears, protruded from the back of its head. Its chest, shoulders, knees, and forearms seemed to be covered in a sort of brown armor. The Pokémon held a spoon in each hand. _'An Alakazam!'_ Riolu realized.

"A Riolu!" Alakazam exclaimed. "How interesting. It is very unusual to see your species in Amaros. Normally, I would ask why you are here. In this case, however, there would be no point in that."

"Why not?" Riolu asked.

"Surely you can guess," Alakazam answered.

Riolu thought for a moment, then came to a sudden realization. _'Wait a minute, Alakazam is a psychic type Pokémon. He's not going to—'_

' _I am afraid that that is exactly what I am going to do,'_ Alakazam interrupted telepathically, his voice resonating inside Riolu's head.

"I am going to look through your mind," Alakazam said out loud. "I will examine your memories and intentions in order to determine whether you can be trusted as a potential Royal Squad member. With a shortened admissions process such as this, there is a higher risk of infiltration by hostile interests. This is the only way to know that you do not have some ulterior motive for becoming a member of a Royal Squad."

As horrifying as the thought of allowing Alakazam into his mind was, especially because it would probably reveal the secret of Riolu's amnesia, Riolu knew that he had no other choice. If he tried to resist, he doubted that he would ever have a chance to form a Royal Squad with Basil.

"Okay," he sighed. "Let's get this over with."

Alakazam nodded. "Very well. I will now begin."

Riolu felt a slight pressure in his head as Alakazam first began to probe around. His most recent memories began to float through his mind. He saw himself using Quick Attack to send Basil into Aurorus and Raila tricking him in their fight. He saw the gates of Ivory Palace as he and Basil approached them. The memories flowed in reverse effortlessly as Alakazam examined them.

The pressure in Riolu's head grew more forceful as Alakazam began to search through his mind more quickly. As each memory passed, Riolu could feel his emotions flowing with them. It was not long before he felt Alakazam approaching his earliest memory. The pressure began to turn into pain as Alakazam continued to search Riolu's mind, trying to find all of his secrets.

The pain increased as Alakazam searched deeper. Riolu's head now felt like a spike was being driven into it. Just as the pain was about to become unbearable, it stopped. Riolu opened his eyes to see Alakazam staring at him with his mouth gaping open.

"Y-You are…" Alakazam stammered.

' _He saw that I'm a human,'_ Riolu thought nervously.

"Indeed," Alakazam said, regaining his composure. "The thought of it seems unbelievable. Regardless, I saw no other signs of mental instability or deceit. Therefore, you have passed this trial."

The quill on the table moved on its own, dipping itself into the inkwell before rapidly writing on the sheet of paper. Riolu watched as the quill wrote: _Riolu- Approved_.

"You may go," Alakazam said.

Riolu nodded and walked out of the tent. There was a dull ache in his head: the aftermath of Alakazam's examination. He hoped that the pain would not last long.

Sola gave Riolu a slight nod as he emerged before telling Basil to go into the tent. Basil gave Riolu a nervous look as they passed each other. It looked like he was trying to find some hint of what to expect in Riolu's face. Riolu walked over to where Raila was sitting on the ground and sat next to her. She did not seem to notice that he was there at first, but then she turned to him.

"How did it go?" she asked.

Riolu shrugged uncertainly. "Fine, I guess. Alakazam said that I passed."

"Well, at least we know you're not a total loon," Raila joked.

"What a relief," Riolu replied sarcastically. "I thought I'd totally lost it. I'm _so_ glad that you don't think so."

Raila giggled before asking in a hushed whisper, "Did he find out about what you told us? That you're a human?"

Riolu nodded. "Yeah. He found out. I guess it didn't really matter, since I still passed."

"Who knows?" Raila said. "Maybe it even got you bonus points."

Riolu laughed. He had been worried that he would have trouble passing the assessment because he did not have a lot of experience as a Pokémon. The thought that it actually could have helped him seemed silly to him.

Riolu looked at the tent, thinking about Basil. _'I hope he's doing okay in there,'_ he thought. _'But I know there's nothing to worry about. Alakazam is just checking to make sure the applicants are trustworthy, so Basil should pass without any problem.'_

The wait felt incredibly long to Riolu, although he knew that it was actually only a minute or two. Eventually, the tent's flaps opened. Basil walked out of the tent, looking visibly shaken. He shuffled over to Riolu and Raila. He seemed to be completely trapped in his thoughts, as though he was barely aware of his surroundings.

Riolu got up and hurried to Basil's side. "Are you okay?" he asked.

"I'm fine," Basil mumbled unconvincingly. "I passed the trial."

Riolu accompanied Basil to the spot where he and Raila had been sitting. Basil allowed himself to drop to the ground. His eyes remained vacant as Riolu sat down next to him. Raila seemed just as concerned as Riolu as she watched Basil.

"What happened?" she asked.

Basil said nothing. He just stared at the ground in front of him, as if in a trance. Raila repeated her question, but he still did not respond. Riolu reached out and touched Basil on the shoulder. Basil looked up at his touch, but he had a faraway look in his eyes, and he showed no signs that he recognized any of the Pokémon around him.

"Basil? Are you okay?" Riolu asked.

Basil remained silent for several seconds. Riolu was about to ask again when Basil suddenly responded, "I'm fine."

"Are you sure?" Riolu probed.

"I'm fine," Basil insisted, shrugging off Riolu's paw. He turned his gaze back toward the ground. Riolu tried to grab his arm to prevent him from falling back into his stupor, but Basil pulled away from him.

Riolu kept trying to get Basil's attention despite the Treecko's attempts to ignore him. "What happened?"

There was a long pause. Riolu started to wonder if Basil had gone back into his absent state, but then Basil answered, "Nothing. Alakazam searched through my mind and said that I passed. That's it."

Riolu had never seen Basil act like this before. The normally cheerful Treecko had suddenly become sullen and withdrawn. He was still staring at the ground, refusing to look at either Riolu or Raila. The glassy look in his eyes kept returning, as though his mind was flickering in and out of reality.

' _What happened in that tent?'_


End file.
